The Duchess of York – affectionately known as Fergie – is the ex-wife of Prince Andrew and mother to Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie. As the ex-wife of a prince and mother to the Queen’s grandchildren, she is entitled to spend time with the Royal Family and has kept her title, although she is no longer HRH. That said, she is not always invited to royal events or treated as a full member of the family.

According to royal expert Brian Hoey, if she turns up at Sandringham for Christmas, the Norfolk estate where the senior royals gather, she does not stay in the main house.

Instead, she stays on Wood Farm, a smaller property nearby.

He wrote in a 2014 Wales Online article: “If Prince Andrew’s ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, turns up, she will be exiled to Wood Farm, a small property on the estate, not in Sandringham itself, and she will not be included in any parties at the ‘Big House’.”

Wood Farm is where Prince Philip reportedly spends a lot of time now, having given up royal duties in his old age.

The Duke of Edinburgh, 98, apparently spends most of his time here, reading, painting, writing letters and having friends to stay.

He is currently recovering at the five-bedroom property from a “wobble” earlier this year.

A royal insider told The Sun last month: “A few weeks ago Philip had a bit of a wobble and hasn’t felt so energetic.

“He has been living quietly at Sandringham, where he spends most of his time reading and pottering around.”

However, at Christmas he will likely vacate the house to spend time with his wife Queen Elizabeth II, his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren in the main country house.

Since divorcing Andrew in 1996, Fergie still attends some functions with her daughters, such as the investitures of the Duke of York into the Royal Victorian Order and the Order of the Garter, and Royal Ascot.

On these occasions she is treated as a member of the Royal Family.

The Lord Chamberlain’s Diamond Jubilee Guidelines mentioned the Duchess specifically as being a member of the Royal Family.

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She has always praised her ex-husband and defended him against criticism.

Fergie has even hinted at the idea of remarrying Andrew in several interviews and said that she will always love him.

In August, 2013, Fergie was invited to say at Balmoral Castle with Andrew, Beatrice and Eugenie as guests of the Queen.

In September 2013, in response to a question about remarrying Andrew, she said: “He’s still my handsome prince, he’ll always be my handsome prince.”

She was not invited to Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding in 2011, but she was in attendance at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding in 2018.

That said, she was not invited to the evening reception at Frogmore House hosted by Prince Charles and was apparently “deeply upset” by this. 

In this way Ms Ferguson has a complicated relationship with the Royal Family, attending certain functions but not others, being included as a member of the royal family but also kept at arms’ length.

Therefore, it makes sense that she would be allowed to spend Christmas on the Sandringham estate but not to participate fully in the festivities.

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