Prince Andrew's ex Sarah Ferguson feels for Duchess Meghan: 'I've been in her shoes'
Duchess Meghan of Sussex, the target of unsparing media coverage this year, got some sympathy from Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York and ex-wife of Prince Andrew, who says she can relate because "I have been in her shoes."
In Vogue Arabia magazine's December issue, Ferguson, or "Fergie" as she is known in Britain, said she still copes with intense press scrutiny, and especially lately in the wake of her ex-husband's scandal arising from his former friendship with American convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The Vogue interview, in which Ferguson also promoted her charity work and lifestyle brand, presents a positive portrait of Ferguson as the predecessor to Meghan in media terms: She, too, was subjected to a life under the microscope and salacious headlines after her marriage to Andrew in 1986.
“I know what Meghan is going through,” she said.
Fergie, 60, is close to her ex and has supported him in the past. Prince Andrew announced last month that he was stepping back from all royal duties as fallout from the widespread condemnation of his interview with the BBC about Epstein.
But she didn't have much to say about that in the interview at a luxury hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. “It’s incredibly difficult,” she told writer Alexandria Gouveia.
Instead, she was much more talkative about the similarities she sees in her own royal story and that of the former Meghan Markle, who married Prince Harry in May 2018. The couple are on a year-end break from royal duties to spend more time with their baby, Archie.
Ferguson said Meghan is "modern and fabulous" and "great," and should be celebrated.
"It must be hard for Meghan, and I can relate to her," Ferguson said. "Any advice for her? I tend not to give advice because it is taken out of context, but I have been in Meghan’s shoes, and I still am. There’s always a twist of negativity and it just gets so sad and tiring; it’s hard and mean.
"I abhor bullying and I feel desperately sorry for the pain they must be going through because I’ve been through it."
Ferguson is the mother of two daughters, Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice, whose planning a wedding for 2020.
Ferguson's marriage to Andrew, 59, fell apart in the early 1990s after reports about her relationship with another man were published, including embarrassing pictures. Her frequent financial difficulties and business problems (she apologized in 2011 for taking a loan from Epstein) also were mocked in the British tabloids.
"The front pages can be cruel. You start to believe it," she said.
How did she cope with media "negativity?"
"I eventually self-sabotaged," she said. "I didn’t think of the ramifications of my actions. I was at the bottom of the barrel. It was almost as if I wanted to be unlovable...
"It was difficult but I’m here now – I feel the chains of my soul are freed. It’s still difficult, though....I have to be aware and steer away from going down the negative route."
She also talked about her bond with her sister-in-law, the late Princess Diana: "Me and Diana had the best time. We really did, no question. I loved her with all my heart."