Sarah Ferguson has opened up about why she will continue to support her scandal-hit ex-husband Prince Andrew - as well as her relationship with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
The Duchess of York is still extremely close to her former husband and lives with him at Royal Lodge in Windsor when in the UK.
Andrew was forced to step down from royal duties in 2019 after a disastrous Newsnight interview where he talked about his association with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Last year, he was stripped of his military affiliations and patronages by his mother the late Queen in the wake of the sex scandal - but denies all allegations against him.
And in a new interview to promote her new romance novel, Fergie says she believes the late Queen was "relieved" she could help her "poor soon" as he has faced the last three years.
She told the Telegraph : "During the last three years, her poor son [Prince Andrew] has been going through such a tumultuous time, and I think HM [the late Queen] was very relieved I could help her with him, so we became even closer, then.
And when asked if the late Queen was confident that Fergie would be there for Andrew after she was gone, she replied: "She knew. I will always be there. Always. Because I love her."
Meanwhile, she opened up about her relationship with "absolutely beautiful" Meghan Markle but admitted that she doesn't really know her and hasn't really met her.
But she added: "She has made Harry very happy, and that is so nice. Honestly, he’s so happy with her. She really loves him. And I think that’s beautiful – and that Diana would be proud of him and her lovely grandchildren."
She also says that she can understand why Harry would want to live in America as it was a "wonderful place" for her after her divorce from Andrew in 1996.
Fergie's comments come after it was reported that King Charles is drawing up a “range of options” to placate his brother Prince Andrew after insisting he must leave his grace-and-favour Royal Lodge mansion.
The monarch will tempt the Duke of York with houses across the royal portfolio after it emerged one option presented to him includes Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Frogmore Cottage home on the same Windsor estate.
His Majesty has taken the extraordinary step to ask the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to vacate their UK base for good, following the publication of Harry’s explosive memoir.
The King has warned members of his family to tighten their belts after slashing royal budgets from next month, including Prince Andrew’s previous annual allowance of £249,000.
But the bullish Duke of York is set on defying his brother after vowing he is “going nowhere” and sources close to him suggest he will “dig his heels in‘’ over any attempt to force him out of his home.
Palace insiders said Andrew, 63, is “holding out” for a role from the King after suggesting he could “help out” by running one of the royal estates.
However, a well-placed source said: “The King and the Duke (of York) have vastly different ideas of where he (Andrew) should base himself both geographically as well as his involvement in family affairs.”
