It’s been 28 years since they divorced – yet speculation is mounting that the Duke and Duchess of York are thinking about marrying again.
It comes amid reports that King Charles III would give his blessing for Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson to tie the knot once more.
The Daily Mail’s Ephraim Hardcastle writes that a source has confirmed the monarch would give a nod to the union.
Rumours about the pair remarrying come after Sarah, 64, affectionately known as Fergie, revealed she was diagnosed with malignant melanoma just months after undergoing a second bout of reconstructive surgery following her breast cancer diagnosis.
The King’s oldest brother, Andrew, 63, is likely supporting his ex, who still lives at Royal Lodge in Windsor Great Park alongside the royal.
So, as rumours swirl, FEMAIL takes a look at the Duke and Duchess of York’s relationship over the years.
It’s been 28 years since they divorced – yet speculation is mounting that the Duke and Duchess of York (pictured in 2019) are thinking about marrying again
When did Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson first meet?
Fergie and Prince Andrew first met at the age of three on the sidelines of a polo field, her parents told the Washington Post in 1986.
Princess Diana, who was Fergie’s best friend from the time they were teenagers, officially reacquainted the pair later in the 1980s, following her marriage to the now King Charles in 1981.
With the duo continuing to run into one another at various events, Sarah and Prince Andrew quickly became an item.
1986: A Royal Engagement
Once they went public, the couple had a whirlwind romance, with Prince Andrew proposing to Fergie on February 19, 1986. Pictured, the couple in March 1986
Fergie’s engagement ring was a sight to behold, as Prince Andrew helped design the oval-cut Burmese ruby surrounded by 10 diamonds
Once they went public, the couple had a whirlwind romance, with Prince Andrew proposing to Fergie on February 19, 1986.
Roughly one month later, they announced their engagement to the public and had a photo session at Buckingham Palace to mark the occasion.
Fergie’s engagement ring was a sight to behold, as Prince Andrew helped design the oval-cut Burmese ruby surrounded by 10 diamonds.
Following the pair’s divorce in 1996, the ring was later passed down to their daughter, Princess Eugenie.
1986: A Fairytale Wedding
Just five months after their engagement announcement, Prince Andrew and Fergie married at Westminster Abbey in London on July 23, 1986
Just five months after their engagement announcement, Prince Andrew and Fergie married at Westminster Abbey in London on July 23, 1986.
The elaborate ceremony was followed by an appearance, as well as their first kiss as husband and wife, on the balcony of Buckingham Palace.
The late Queen and Prince Phillip attended the wedding, alongside Princess Diana and King Charles, with Prince William, who was four years old at the time, serving as a page boy and Prince Andrew’s younger brother Prince Edward as the best man.
The York Diamond Tiara that Fergie wore on the big day was specially commissioned by Queen Elizabeth as a wedding gift.
Fergie later told Piers Morgan in 2011: ‘We married for total love. And when I went up that aisle, I had – I married my man.’
1988: The birth of Princess Beatrice
Prince Andrew with the Duchess of York with their first-born, Princess Beatrice, at Portland Hospital in London on 8th August 1988
On 8 August 1988, the newlyweds welcomed their first daughter Princess Beatrice, who is now 35-years-old, at The Portland Hospital in London.
Born fifth in line of succession to the British throne, the royal is now ninth.
Princess Beatrice later went on to marry Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, a property developer and English-born Italian noble, in 2020, with their daughter, Sienna, born in September 2021.
1990: The birth of Princess Eugenie
The Duke and Duchess of York pause outside the Portland Hospital in London with the duchess holding their second daughter, Princess Eugenie, in 1990
Two years later, Prince Andrew and Fergie’s second daughter, Princess Eugenie, now 33-years-old, was born on 23 March 1990.
At birth, she was sixth in the line of succession to the British throne, but is now 11th.
Princess Eugenie married Jack Brooksbank in 2018. The couple have two sons named August and Ernest.
In 2021, Fergie wrote for Good Housekeeping in an open letter to her daughters: ‘Every day I thank the universe for allowing me to be your mother. You have always been the blood in my veins.
‘From the time you were wee tots, you made my life complete. I look at how full of humility, laughter and joy you are in your hearts, and I marvel at you both.’
1992: Prince Andrew and Duchess of York separate
After nearly six years of marriage, Fergie and Prince Andrew separated on 19 March 1992.
At the time, Sarah cited Prince Andrew’s naval commitments as the reason the marriage broke down.
She told US presenter Ernie Manouse in 2010: ‘My deal was that I was marrying my man, who happened to be a prince and a naval officer.
‘But what I got was not the man, I got the palace and didn’t get him… and the courtiers told me I had to go to Buckingham Palace and he had to go to sea. For our marriage, I saw him 40 days a year.’
That year, photos of the royal’s financial advisor John Bryan sucking Fergie’s toes on holiday made headlines around the world.
The notorious photographs were taken in August 1992 at a secluded private villa in the South of France, a few months after the Duchess of York had officially separated from Prince Andrew.
‘The attraction was mutual – and instant,’ he told MailOnline in 2022. ‘I loved her then and I adore her now.
1996: Divorce
Sarah and Andrew still live together at Royal Lodge in Windsor Great Park
In 1996, Andrew and Sarah divorced – with the Duchess claiming that she had taken this decision so she could pursue a career independent of the Royal Family.
Speaking to Harper’s Bazaar, Sarah explained: ‘I didn’t want a divorce but had to because of circumstance
‘I wanted to work; it’s not right for a princess of the royal house to be commercial, so Andrew and I decided to make the divorce official so I could go off and get a job.’
The Duchess of York has since gone on to publish 46 books – including her most recent novel A Very Intriguing Lady.
Despite Fergie’s numerous commercial ventures, she and Prince Andrew made a decision to still live with one another – and have continued to do so nearly thirty years on.
The pair still share a home, living at Royal Lodge in Windsor Great Park, the ten-bedroom former residence of the Queen Mother.
Sarah told the Daily Mail in 2018: ‘We’re the happiest divorced couple in the world. We’re divorced to each other, not from each other.’
The pair have both remained devoted to raising their daughters, and have since made numerous public appearances together as a family unit.
2019: The Epstein Scandal
The Prince, who has previously strenuously denied the allegations, paid millions a year ago to settle a civil case out of court with Virginia Giuffre, with no admission of guilt after the alleged Jeffrey Epstein victim accused the royal of sexually assaulting her when she was 17.The Duchess of York told the Financial Times in 2021 that she was ‘100 per cent’ certain that her ex-husband was being honest when he denied seeing anything untoward during the time he spent with Jeffrey Epstein.
She told the publication: ‘I want him [Andrew] to come through this. I want him to win.’
When asked why she was sure of his probity, she replied: ‘No question. I know everything about him. I think he is an extraordinary person.’
It was later revealed that Sarah Ferguson was once given £15,000 from the paedophile billionaire to pay off her debts.
The deal was struck in December 2010 after months of negotiations with Epstein who insisted on helping with her financial troubles.
Although Buckingham Palace announced Prince Andrew will no longer be involved in official royal public duties, he has since attended numerous events, often with his ex-wife by his side.
2024: Remarriage Rumours
Prince Andrew, Duke of York (L) and Sarah, Duchess of York (R) arrive for the Royal Family’s traditional Christmas Day service at St Mary Magdalene Church on December 25 2023
Wedding bells may soon be ringing in Windsor amid reports that King Charles would give his blessing for Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson to tie the knot once more.
The Daily Mail’s Ephraim Hardcastle writes that a source has confirmed the monarch would give a nod to the union – but if the couple did decide to remarry it would be a small affair.
Hardcastle reports any ceremony would take place in the small All Saints Chapel near their home at the Royal Lodge in Windsor, which is where their daughter Princess Beatrice said ‘I do’ with her husband Edo Mapelli Mozzi in 2020 during the pandemic.
Any such wedding celebration would be a far cry from the show-stopping spectacle of their 1986 nuptials at Westminster Abbey, which Fergie has described as ‘the best day of her life’ despite the couple divorcing a decade later.
Speaking on Italian talk show Porta a Porta, she said: ‘I was the luckiest girl in the world. It was truly a fairytale because I was marrying a prince.’
The lavish ceremony welcomed A-listers in abundance on the guestlist, a flower arrangement in excess of 30,000 blooms and a 5ft rum-soaked cake served up to guests at a glitzy after party in Claridge’s Hotel.
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