- Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson broke cover for the first time since new allegations about the Duke of York were published on Sunday, August 3.
- The exes were photographed driving to Windsor Castle.
- Prince Harry previously spoke out to deny some of the claims, including one that he and Prince Andrew got into a physical fight in 2013 at a family gathering.
As Prince Andrew weathers a new set of claims, his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson is showing that she’s still in his corner. In photos obtained by People, the Duke and Duchess of York could be seen on Sunday, August 3 driving to Windsor Castle.
In the images, Prince Andrew gazed out the window as he sat at the wheel of the car. Meanwhile, “Fergie,” as she has become known, had took the passenger seat. Despite getting divorced in 1996, the exes—who share daughters Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie—are still friendly and even live together in the nearby Royal Lodge residence, which is on the Windsor Estate grounds. According to People, the former couple enjoyed a Sunday walk near the castle.
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The Yorks’ Sunday outing marks their first public appearance since new excerpts from Andrew Lownie’s book, Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York were published by the Daily Mail. In addition to detailing alleged details of Prince Andrew’s relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, the preview also claimed that Prince Harry and his uncle came to blows in 2013 over his comments about Meghan Markle—reports that Prince Harry has since denied to People via his spokesperson.
The Duke of Sussex’s spokesperson shut down Lownie’s claims that the pair got into a physical fight at a family gathering as well as allegations that Prince Andrew called Markle an “opportunist” while criticizing their marriage.
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“I can confirm neither of those things are true. Prince Harry and Prince Andrew have never had a physical fight, nor did Prince Andrew ever make those comments about the Duchess of Sussex to Prince Harry,” the spokesperson shared, revealing that the Duke of Sussex plans to pursue legal action over the defamatory statements.
The rest of the senior royals have yet to respond to these claims, but it’s a blow for Prince Andrew, who has stepped back from his working royal duties as well public engagements following a string of scandals over the last few years. The Duke of York has come under scrutiny over his relationship with Epstein, sexual assault allegations, and, most recently, his alleged association with a man who turned out to be a Chinese spy—and insiders previously reported that Prince William believes his uncle is too much of a “risk” to bring back for public-facing duties.
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Per The New York Post, Andrew “will not be returning as a working member of the royal family under Prince William’s reign.” The insider also shared that an “adamant” William “refuses to even explore the premise of allowing him to return to public-facing duties.” However, Sarah Ferguson and Prince Andrew’s daughters could see their roles in the monarchy expand once Prince William becomes king.