For royal fans, Prince William and Princess Kate’s wedding was a spectacular fairy-tale celebration. Yet for one member of the royal family, it brought up bittersweet memories. 

Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York and Prince William’s aunt, who wasn’t invited to the ceremony, found herself reflecting on her own whirlwind royal romance and the complexities it carried.

Reflecting on the lavish wedding at Westminster Abbey, where “ordinary” Kate Middleton was transformed into a future queen, Fergie experienced a wave of “great regret,” revisiting her journey from a young bride to a Duchess whose marriage would end in scandal.

The Duchess of York, now 65, had known her ex-husband, Prince Andrew, since childhood, when they would play games together. Years later, at a Royal Ascot event in 1985, they were reintroduced by Princess Diana, who had a keen sense that the two would hit it off and arranged the meeting. 

This led to a rapid romance, and by February 1986, Prince Andrew proposed at Floors Castle in Scotland. The couple married at Westminster Abbey that same summer, with the public warmly welcoming the new 25-year-old Duchess.

Years later, as she recalled William and Kate’s wedding, Fergie shared in an interview on The Daily: “I was that bride, and at 25 years old, I went down the aisle of Westminster Abbey.” She reflected on her youth, saying, “If I, being me now, could go back to that young girl when I was 24, I would say to her, ‘You know what? I will stick with you… You don’t need to run around trying to get everyone to love you. I love you, i.e., yourself, myself.'”

Her marriage initially appeared strong, especially with the joy of welcoming daughters Princess Beatrice in 1988 and Princess Eugenie in 1990. However, Andrew’s demanding Royal Navy schedule kept him away frequently, leading to a strained connection. 

In her book Finding Sarah: A Duchess’s Journey to Find Herself (2011), she shared, “We rarely saw each other, and you cannot build a foundation without the bricks and mortar of togetherness and communication.”

By 1992—a notably turbulent year for the royal family—the couple announced their separation. Their divorce was finalised in 1996, but they remained close friends, still sharing their Windsor residence at Royal Lodge.

As Fergie puts it, “We always say we are the most contented divorced couple in the world. We’re divorced to each other, not from each other.”