The former Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson, is expected to return to the United Kingdom shortly, according to a source close to her. Ferguson, who was forced to vacate Royal Lodge in Windsor—a property she shared with her ex-husband Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor—in October, has been living out of the public eye for several months. It is believed she has spent this time at an Alpine chalet in Verbier, Switzerland.
Reports from the Sun newspaper indicate that Ferguson is set to move into a six-bedroom, gated property in the Home Counties, potentially as early as next week. Her belongings were reportedly collected from Mountbatten-Windsor’s residence in Sandringham earlier this week.
Ferguson and Mountbatten-Windsor both relinquished their royal titles following intense scrutiny regarding their associations with the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Since that time, Ferguson has maintained a low profile. Her last public appearance occurred in September at the funeral of the Duchess of Kent. In addition to losing her courtesy royal divorcee title and reverting to her maiden name, she also lost the freedom of the city of York after local councillors unanimously voted to remove the honour.
The scrutiny surrounding Ferguson intensified following the release of millions of documents last year, which led to calls for her to speak with US authorities. Among the revelations were email exchanges, including one from 2011 in which she appeared to apologize for publicly distancing herself from Epstein, describing him as a "steadfast, generous and supreme friend" to her and her family. A spokesperson for the duchess previously stated that the email was sent in an attempt to dissuade Epstein from suing her for defamation. Another email suggested she took her daughters to visit Epstein in the US shortly after he was released from prison for child sex crimes. These emails do not indicate any wrongdoing on her part.
Epstein’s associations also contributed to the downfall of Mountbatten-Windsor, who was stripped of his titles by the King due to "serious lapses of judgment." Mountbatten-Windsor has consistently denied any wrongdoing. Ferguson’s expected return to Britain follows the recent arrival of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who have returned to the UK with their children after six years of living in the United States.
