Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie have reportedly visited their mother, Sarah Ferguson, at her £10,000-a-month rental in the Home Counties, but are said to be avoiding public appearances with her.
The King’s nieces are understood to be wary of being “tainted by scandal” after the former Duchess of York, 67, returned to Britain following a series of trips across Europe as she faced renewed scrutiny over the Epstein Files.
Ferguson is believed to be renting a six-bedroom property inside a gated Home Counties development for £10,000 a month. She moved there after being evicted from Royal Lodge alongside her former husband, disgraced ex-prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
Royal commentator Phil Dampier told Hello! magazine that Beatrice, 38, and Eugenie, 36, had both visited their mother at the new property within the past few weeks.
“I don’t think they want to be seen with her in public at the moment, and she probably realises it’s not a good idea either,” he said. “But behind the scenes they are talking and trying to be supportive.”
Dampier added that both sisters—including Eugenie, who recently welcomed a daughter, Adelaide—would be reassessing “the things they get involved with”.
He also questioned whether the family’s days of “being the tripod” were over, hinting that Ferguson’s relationship with her daughters may have changed amid the continuing controversy.
The claims come as speculation grows that Ferguson has lost the backing of another charity after a plaque marking her former association with Great Ormond Street Hospital was removed.
Beatrice and Eugenie have reportedly visited Sarah Ferguson at her £10,000-a-month Home Counties rental but are said to be avoiding public appearances with her
For decades, a grey slate plaque bearing gold lettering stood outside a special hostel for the parents of seriously ill children at Great Ormond Street. It commemorated the fact that Ferguson, then Duchess of York, opened the “Home from Home” facility in 1990.
The plaque has now disappeared. In its place are a clear outline on the Georgian brickwork and two holes showing where it had been attached until recently.
Neither the former duchess nor the charity responsible for the hostel responded to a Daily Mail request for comment at the time.
Ferguson’s public standing suffered a major blow last year after The Mail on Sunday published emails that appeared to show the extent of her relationship with the late US financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Ferguson had publicly cut ties with Epstein after his 2008 conviction for abusing a teenage girl. Privately, however, she described him as a “supreme friend” and issued a deeply apologetic message after criticising him.
Following the publication of those and other emails by the MoS, the King removed Ferguson and her former husband Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s titles and ordered them to leave Royal Lodge, the grace-and-favour residence in Windsor Great Park they had shared.
Ferguson was subsequently dropped as a patron by several charities, including Julia’s House children’s hospice, Prevent Breast Cancer, the British Heart Foundation, Teenage Cancer Trust and the National Foundation for Retired Service Animals.
Last month, a spokesperson for Ferguson rejected reports that she was close to securing a multimillion-pound deal for a tell-all book about the Royal Family.
Ferguson is believed to be renting a six-bedroom, £10,000-a-month house in a gated Home Counties community after leaving Royal Lodge
Although Ferguson is reportedly determined to rebuild her damaged reputation and hopes to be “welcomed back” by the public, her representatives said she has no plans to publish a tell-all memoir.
The statement followed a report in The Sun claiming that a chapter-by-chapter outline for the proposed book had been completed. It was said to draw on detailed notes about several “key” royal figures and subjects, including Andrew, King Charles, Prince Harry, Meghan Markle and Jeffrey Epstein.
But Sarah denied the report in a rare statement.
Fergie has spent seven months living abroad and has been spotted across Europe, including in Switzerland and Austria, as she kept a low profile over the Epstein controversy.
During this time, she was spotted at a £2,000-a-night spa in Austria and at a Swiss Alpine chalet in Verbier owned by her late former lover Paddy McNally.
Fergie’s return to British soil comes hot on the heels of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, who moved back to the UK with their young family after six years in California.
Earlier this week, Eugenie shared an adorable video of her husband Jack Brooksbank cradling their newborn daughter as she celebrated their eighth wedding anniversary.
She gave royal fans a rare glimpse into family life as she paid a touching tribute to her husband of eight years, describing him as the ‘best Dada’ to their three children.
In the heartwarming clip posted to Instagram, Jack, 40, can be seen gently holding and rocking baby Adelaide, who was born in Portugal in August.
Princess Eugenie recently shared an adorable video of her husband Jack Brooksbank cradling their newborn daughter as she celebrated their eighth wedding anniversary
Princess Beatrice and Edo Mapelli Mozzi made a rare public outing together as they joined Zara Tindall and the Duchess of Edinburgh for the Cornbury House Horse Trials last month
The proud father appears to be soothing his daughter by massaging her head, with Eugenie revealing the sweet conversation taking place between the pair.
She captioned the post: ‘Happy 8 years married my love.
‘What you can’t hear in this video is Jack asking our daughter if she likes her head being massaged that way… so thoughtful, caring, and best Dada there is to our 3. Couldn’t have wished for a better partner.’
Meanwhile, Beatrice and her husband Edo Mapelli Mozzi made a rare public outing last month, when they joined Zara Tindall and the Duchess of Edinburgh for the Cornbury House Horse Trials.
Beatrice – who has kept a relatively low profile amid the ongoing fallout over Andrew and Sarah’s controversial ties to the late paedophile financier Epstein – put on an affectionate display with her husband.
The event marked the first time Beatrice has been seen publicly since she attended the funeral of her mother’s ex-boyfriend Paddy McNally last month.
The late Formula One advertising mogul reportedly left Sarah Ferguson ‘an allowance’ following his death at the age of 88 in July.
Mr McNally was buried at St James’ Church in Sevenhampton, Wiltshire, on August 14, but it is not known whether the former duchess of York was in attendance alongside her 38-year-old daughter.
He leaves behind an estimated £600million fortune, built on the sale of his hospitality business Allsport Management for £262million in 2006.
Mr McNally and Ms Ferguson had a three-year affair that ended in 1985 but the tycoon supported the former duchess – who was 22 years his junior – for years.
While it is not known how close Princess Beatrice would have been with McNally, she and her sister Eugenie enjoyed many family holidays at his properties in their childhood.