Sarah Ferguson and Prince Philip conflict. When Prince Andrew began having an affair with Sarah Ferguson in the summer of 1985, his father had no qualms about the girl - her father, Major Ronald Ferguson, had once been his polo manager before going on to work with Prince Charles. Philip assumed that the cheerful and direct Fergie, who came from a relatively simple family, "will knock the arrogance out of Andrew". Alas, the optimism and humour of red-haired girl was the opposite side: Sarah was not too disciplined and too simple-minded. She could not get used to the restrictions imposed by court protocol. Philip, accustomed to all sorts of deprivations, did not understand her. "The Mountbattens did well, and so can you. Hold your lip, old girl," Sarah herself relayed his words. She claimed that her father-in-law began to take every opportunity to criticise her or express contempt, and the situation only got worse as time went on. After the Yorks' divorce, the prince's father didn't even want to hear Fergie's name, and they didn't see each other for 26 years, until the wedding of his youngest daughter Sarah brought them back together.

свернуть