Sarah Ferguson, the former Duchess of York, has long been a figure of both fascination and controversy. Over the years, her professional environment has reportedly been anything but stable. According to royal author Andrew Lownie, working under her was “absolutely chaotic.”
Employees Would Cry in the Bathrooms When Working for Sarah Ferguson
Lownie, the biographer of Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York, recently shared insights with Page Six about the challenges faced by those in her employ. He described how some staff members would often be seen crying in the bathrooms, with some even quitting after just half a day on the job.
“She couldn’t make up her mind,” he explained. “She changed her mind at the last minute.” This unpredictability created an atmosphere that many found difficult to navigate.
“Very few people stayed, and if they did, it was a sort of 24-hour-a-day job because she has this extraordinary energy and she would be flying off in different places, not very organized,” Lownie continued.
Ferguson’s tendency to be impulsive extended beyond her work environment. She was also known for wasting food, according to Lownie. “Various meals being prepared and then actually not having any of them,” he said. “She would order meals from chefs and then decide to go out at the last second.”
This behavior, he added, reflected a lifestyle that seemed to prioritize excess over practicality. “Huge waste,” he remarked. “It’s extraordinary…everything has to be new…Just this Marie Antoinette kind of life, you know, easy come, easy go.”
Sarah Ferguson and Ex-Prince Andrew Were Married From 1986 to 1996
Ferguson was married to ex-Prince Andrew from 1986 until 1996. The couple had two daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie. Despite their divorce, the pair remained connected for years.
The former couple cohabitated together at their Royal Lodge home from 2008 until earlier this year when they were evicted by King Charles. The monarch took away Andrew’s royal titles and Windsor home due to his friendship with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, 66, was arrested in February by Thames Valley police on suspicion of misconduct in public office for allegedly sending confidential trade documents to Epstein.
The Former Duchess of York Was Last Seen in the Swiss Alps Last Month
While Ferguson was largely absent from public view following Charles’ removal of her ex-husband’s titles last October, she was spotted in April hiding out in the Swiss Alps.
“Fergie has been keeping an incredibly low profile while high up in the Alps,” a source told The Sun. “The area is absolutely beautiful and it’s very quiet most of the time, so it’s the perfect place for a high-profile figure such as her to lie low when the heat is on.”
Her last alleged sighting dated back to the christening of Beatrice’s second child, Athena, in December 2025. She hadn’t been seen in public since September 2025 when she attended Katharine, the Duchess of Kent’s funeral.
