News that Sarah Ferguson has been spending time within the UAE ought to shock nobody – as she is starting to see the Middle East as the one place left globally the place she will not be socially and financially shunned, we are able to reveal.
The former Duchess of York who was evicted from her longtime Windsor house this month, has, alongside along with her former husband Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, change into a pariah throughout the west because the extent of their affiliation with paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein has made headlines.
Friends now consider that she could conclude that the one place the place her former royal standing should open doorways is within the oil-rich states.
So they’re now asking: ‘Might Fergie truly relocate to the Gulf?’
Royal creator Andrew Lownie, who wrote a damning guide on the scandal-hit couple referred to as Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York, believes that multi-millionaires in Dubai and the encompassing nations of Bahrain and Qatar will in all probability be bankrolling Fergie already.
He mentioned: ‘In Britain neither Sarah or Andrew will probably be socially accepted once more no matter they attempt to do or wherever they go. But within the Middle East nobody will care about what they’ve as much as.
‘There are individuals there – royalty, politicians and enterprise varieties – whom Sarah can fairly fortunately sponge off and who will probably be joyful to bankroll each of them.
‘These kinds of individuals within the Middle East merely could not care much less what Sarah has completed. And even when she does not have her title of the Duchess of York anymore, she is going to nonetheless be seen as royalty and handled as such – and he or she is aware of it.’
Fergie along with her daughters, Princesses Beatrice (left) and Eugenie (proper), pictured collectively in 2017
The household in a selfie posted on Instagram, together with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor
Sarah Ferguson is regarded as plotting a transfer to the UAE. Pictured: The Etihad Towers in Dubai
Mr Lownie added: ‘There are loads of dodgy individuals within the Middle East who would fairly fortunately assist out Sarah. People in Dubai have been linked to Epstein via the e-mail launch however they’re secure as a result of they know they’re untouchable.
‘They have palaces and properties that they’ll fairly fortunately mortgage out to Sarah and I would not be shocked in the event that they even pay her airfares and canopy all her payments to assist her out.
‘Let’s not overlook Sarah has no cash and has fairly an extravagant way of life, she is going to wish to carry that on.
‘I’m certain Sarah might make a life for herself on the market, staying out of the general public eye and sponging off Middle East connections.’
The fabulously wealthy kingdoms and emirates – the place even tarnished royals can disappear behind the closed doorways of opulent palaces and splendid villas – present the right bolthole for the disgraced ex-duchess.
Fergie has been spending time within the UAE, and, in accordance with royal watchers, linking up along with her daughter Princess Eugenie, 35, who was in Qatar for the Art Basel honest.
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Eugenie is pictured with buddy Caroline Daur, 30, working at an artwork honest in Qatar this week
Eugenie pictured in Qatar this week
And she has been telling her mates: ‘I must get again to work. I want cash.’
She has each have in depth and doubtlessly profitable contacts throughout the Middle East.
Among them is Dubai enterprise tycoon Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem who was himself recognized within the current Epstein file drop – although this had far much less important protection in his homeland than Andrew and Fergie have confronted right here.
And one of many former Duchess’s closest confidants, PR guru James Henderson, her official spokesman for twenty years, relocated to Dubai final yr.
Abu Dhabi is the capital of The United Arab Emirates and it is unsure whether or not Fergie’s pink flag standing will truly have an effect on her standing within the money-orientated bling Gulf State, the place her ex-husband Andrew constructed up in depth contacts whereas he was ‘working’ as a UK enterprise envoy.
Likewise, because the Daily Mail revealed final yr, Andrew has been supplied the usage of a non-public royal villa inside Abu Dhabi’s ultra-exclusive Sea Palace advanced, surrounded by excessive ranges of safety, ought to he tire of his new digs at Marsh Farm on the moist and windy Sandringham property.
Andrew, 65, was supplied use of the waterfront house in Abu Dhabi by president Sheik Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, whom he met after they have been pupils at Gordonstoun School. The invitation could nicely prolong to the previous duchess.
Sheik Mohamed ordered a refurbishment of a non-public villa inside the advanced following the dying of Queen Elizabeth II.
Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, 65, has been supplied use of a waterfront house by UAE president Sheik Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (each pictured)
The six-bedroom property, with a house cinema, indoor plunge pool and health club, gives the disgraced former prince the prospect to dwell away from the media highlight
It is believed the villa has been extensively used prior to now by each Andrew and his daughters, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie
Designers mentioned the refurbished villa aimed to mix classical grandeur with a ‘youthful and playful’ inside – utilizing daring colors and people marble finishes to modernise the ‘palace-style’ house.
The six-bedroom property, with a house cinema, indoor plunge pool and health club, supplied the disgraced former prince the prospect to dwell away from the media highlight.
A very massive kitchen is staffed by Cordon Bleu cooks, with fittings akin to gentle switches, lamps and faucets embellished in gold.
When the Sea Palace, constructed within the 18th century as a watchtower to guard from seaborne raiders, was put at Andrew’s disposal in 2010, Buckingham Palace was eager to emphasize it was not an outright present.
The Yorks’ associations with the Gulf return a number of many years and in October 2025, Princess Beatrice was seen internet hosting a ‘tea occasion’ in the identical Riyadh lodge, the notorious Ritz Carlton, the place lots of of the Saudi ‘previous guard’ have been crushed and tortured in 2017.
The Riyadh gathering, a part of the celebrated Future Investment Initiative, was simply the newest event when Beatrice rubbed shoulders with a number of the richest males on the planet.
Some even questioned if she is likely to be quietly slipping into the previous position stuffed by her disgraced father, the previous Prince Andrew, of UK commerce envoy.
Even way back to 2008, hypothesis started that the then 19-year-old Beatrice was being groomed for the position when Andrew took her on a 14-day tour of Abu Dhabi and Egypt – at taxpayers’ expense.
The invoice for the Met Police bodyguard she was allowed in these days alone was estimated at £40,000 since, due to shift patterns, one set of cops needed to be flown out to switch one other. She carried out no public engagements.
In 2011, it was reported that Beatrice was given costly items of jewelry on one other journey to Abu Dhabi with Andrew by their royal hosts.
Many years later, Beatrice was fronting an occasion for girls enterprise leaders in Riyadh.
The invites introduced: ‘We cordially invite you to Afternoon Tea hosted by Princess Beatrice of York,’ together with Canadian wellness entrepreneur Ruma Bose, and a US-based organisation referred to as the ‘Lioness Collective’.
Princess Beatrice pictured in Riyadh, internet hosting ‘afternoon tea’
The afternoon tea invites billed the occasion as ‘insights and daring concepts for investing in ladies, wellness, and the following era of leaders’
Our enquiries with Beatrice’s co-hosts on the ‘Lioness Collective’ and Ms Bose drew no response on the time.
Many attendees have been shocked that Beatrice even confirmed up for the Riyadh occasion, given the tumultuous occasions which had occurred again house.
Her mother and father had simply successfully been thrown out on their ears by King Charles after they have been uncovered as having lied about breaking off contact with billionaire paedophile Epstein within the years following his 2008 conviction and plea deal for soliciting little one prostitution.
Since then, with every new tranche of emails and pictures from the Epstein information, the King’s unflinching therapy of the Yorks has solely been vindicated.
Beatrice and Eugenie have been mentioned to have been ‘left aghast’ and ‘completely devastated’ by the newest scandal surrounding their father – accused by the late Epstein sufferer Virginia Giuffre of getting intercourse along with her when she was trafficked and underage, which he has denied.
Last yr throughout Beatrice’s look in Abu Dhabi, she additionally rubbed shoulders with a number of the area’s key energy gamers each in public and behind the scenes.
She spoke about synthetic intelligence on the Adipec power convention within the Emirate, the place her father is reported to have the unique use of a royal palace at his disposal.
Beatrice additionally attended a non-public convention hosted by the UAE minister of business, Dr Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, the day earlier than her public look.
She was pictured on the occasion subsequent to Abu Dhabi crown prince Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
Reporters have been banned from the assembly, which included the CEOs of Shell and EDF, the vp of Microsoft, and former Bank of England governor Mark Carney, now the UN particular envoy for local weather motion.
In a public interview on stage, Beatrice made certain she hit her key factors, rattling away pleasantly and fluently about ‘collaboration’, ‘transferring the needle’, ‘increasing the dialog’ and ‘asking questions’.
US journalist Hadley Gamble, who carried out the interview, advised the Mail on Sunday: ‘There was a basic feeling that Beatrice was an unofficial ambassador for the UK.’
She added: ‘Beatrice was fairly actually within the inside circle at a gathering of worldwide power CEOs, high finance guys and coverage makers.’
When Beatrice accompanied her father on Andrew’s official UK commerce envoy journeys, the traces have been all the time blurred, and many individuals could not assist however discover that many typically coincided with the weekends of F1 Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi or Bahrain.
A number of months earlier than he was compelled to face down as Trade Envoy in 2011, the general public got a uncommon perception into what the diplomats referred to as on to assist prepare Andrew’s journeys actually considered him.
A bombshell letter from former UK Ambassador to Qatar and Tunisia, Stephen Day, an ex-head of the Foreign Office’s Middle East part, was leaked.
He advised authorities ministers that Andrew needs to be sacked ‘as quickly as potential’ as a result of he was doing ‘critical harm’ to the Royal Family and Britain.
Mr Day mentioned the Prince was the ‘worst particular person’ to deploy in nations akin to Qatar, the place his presence was seen as ‘crass’.
He additionally alleged that Andrew had held a ‘worrying’ non-public assembly with Col Gaddafi three years earlier on the house of Sakher el–Materi, the son–in-law of the not too long ago ousted Tunisian president, and described by Mr Day as ‘the worst of all of the crooks within the presidential household’.
Andrew’s reign as commerce envoy got here to an ignominious finish three months later, however he then morphed into the host of ‘Pitch@Palace’, serving to younger entrepreneurs hyperlink up with potential buyers.