York Family News and Pictures 1: September 2003-September 2015

[Dman]

I think Mark attends little family events. Everynow and then you'd spot him at one of Zara's events, although I haven't seen him in a while.

 

[US Royal Watcher]

Also, I think the royal family has learned from the mistakes made with Sarah and Diana. Kate had more support and more time to adjust to royal life. It's possible that the Queen has realized Sarah could have benefited from more support in the past (and still can).

One thing I have always admired about Sarah is that she takes responsibility for her own action and has (for the most part) refused to blame the Queen or anyone else for failing to "support" her.

It's certainly nice when divorced couples are able to get along with each other and it would be even nicer if the extended family can forgive and move on.

 

[Dman]

Sarah did place some responsibility on the royals but I think everything has calmed down between them and mellowed with the passing of the years.

I agree, I think it's very nice and the family respect the fact that Andrew & Sarah has remained good friends and was able to keep their family together, despite past issues.

 

[Mermaid1962]

I've been wondering whether there's going to be some kind of significant change in the York family soon. Between Sarah's being invited to Balmoral Castle (not just a home on the estate) and Beatrice's taking on Royal patronages, I think there's something afoot. Here are a couple of guesses: Andrew and Sarah will re-formalize their relationship in some way and the Princesses will take a more active role publicly as their father quietly takes on fewer duties.

 

[Ish]

I don't think the girls taking on more public engagements is going to be in place of Andrew taking on fewer. I think instead we're going to see Princess Alexandra, the Duke of Kent, and Prince Philip doing less, while the York sisters begin to do more (and hopefully be recognized for what they do in the CC).

 

[Mermaid1962]

Yes, you make a good point re the oldest members of the family.

 

[Ish]

They're not the oldest (well Philip is), but they're certainly up there and they have all had health problems this year and have been doing less.

I think we can expect to see the three of them, along with the Queen and possibly even the Gloucesters doing less in the near future. Charles will take over more for his mother, while the other royals will take over the "slack" that's left elsewhere. With at least four, possibly 6, working royals doing less there's room for William, Catherine, Beatrice, and Eugenie to do more.

My only hope is that if Beatrice and/or Eugenie wish to do more and do do more then they're recognized as doing such. Some of the argument towards them being lazy and what not can be mitigated simply by recognizing them for whatever royal duties they perform. They have done stuff that is representative of the family or country in the past that if one of the Queen's children or Charles' sons had done would have been reported in the CC, but for them hasn't been.

 

[cepe]

They're not the oldest (well Philip is), but they're certainly up there and they have all had health problems this year and have been doing less.

I think we can expect to see the three of them, along with the Queen and possibly even the Gloucesters doing less in the near future. Charles will take over more for his mother, while the other royals will take over the "slack" that's left elsewhere. With at least four, possibly 6, working royals doing less there's room for William, Catherine, Beatrice, and Eugenie to do more.

My only hope is that if Beatrice and/or Eugenie wish to do more and do do more then they're recognized as doing such. Some of the argument towards them being lazy and what not can be mitigated simply by recognizing them for whatever royal duties they perform. They have done stuff that is representative of the family or country in the past that if one of the Queen's children or Charles' sons had done would have been reported in the CC, but for them hasn't been.

Agree with your post but I'm questioning William and Catherine. William is probably not leaving the services and Catherine will IMO do about the same as she was doing last year, and then have 1 or 2 more children. She will probably not go full-time until she is closer to 40.

And that is probably why, with your other reasons, why Beatrice will do some royal events.

I have no evidence to proffer in support of my view, it's JMO

 

[Ish]

You have a good point. I'm not trying to assume that William or Catherine are going to do more, just saying that with older royals doing less there is a vacuum for younger royals to do more.

 

[cepe]

You have a good point. I'm not trying to assume that William or Catherine are going to do more, just saying that with older royals doing less there is a vacuum for younger royals to do more.

Absolutely right. What will be interesting if it does happen is how the press and public will handle it.

And more importantly, the Palaces PR machine. Best approach is "at the request of HMQ" and " no additional cost to the tax payer".

 

[Dman]

Many people (including me) think the younger royals should be doing more. I think William & Catherine will up their official duties but if Beatrice & Eugenie get on board, then I guess that's a good thing but I do think the Monarchy should slim down and Andrew has admitted publically that this will happen.

 

[AdmirerUS]

I've been wondering whether there's going to be some kind of significant change in the York family soon. Between Sarah's being invited to Balmoral Castle (not just a home on the estate) and Beatrice's taking on Royal patronages, I think there's something afoot. Here are a couple of guesses: Andrew and Sarah will re-formalize their relationship in some way and the Princesses will take a more active role publicly as their father quietly takes on fewer duties.

And I think that if Andrew takes on fewer duties, the ice wall will return. Bigger than ever. IMHO.

 

[HRH Princess Sonya]

Personally I think it is simply the Queen extending the olive branch for Beatrice's 25th birthday. A 25th birthday is considered among the milestone birthday's in a person's life. The queen did the same thing when Beatrice turned 18 so I don't think it's any big deal. Hopefully Andrew is smart enough not choose to ride that train wreak for the rest of his life and not have live always wondering " what *&#! Sara is going to do next to embarrass me, my children, or the rest of the BRF.

 

[Dman]

I think the family want both Andrew and Sarah to continue behaving themselves.

 

[rmay286]

Personally I think it is simply the Queen extending the olive branch for Beatrice's 25th birthday. A 25th birthday is considered among the milestone birthday's in a person's life. The queen did the same thing when Beatrice turned 18 so I don't think it's any big deal. Hopefully Andrew is smart enough not choose to ride that train wreak for the rest of his life and not have live always wondering " what *&#! Sara is going to do next to embarrass me, my children, or the rest of the BRF.

You might be right, but according to the Express article, this is the first time Sarah has been invited to the actual castle on Balmoral since her divorce, so this is even more significant than when Beatrice turned 18. It surprises me that Sarah was invited to Balmoral, let alone the castle, after the cash for access scandal. I would have thought that the royal family REALLY wouldn't want to have anything to do with Sarah after that. Instead, the Queen seems to have forgiven her.

I've been wondering whether there's going to be some kind of significant change in the York family soon. Between Sarah's being invited to Balmoral Castle (not just a home on the estate) and Beatrice's taking on Royal patronages, I think there's something afoot. Here are a couple of guesses: Andrew and Sarah will re-formalize their relationship in some way and the Princesses will take a more active role publicly as their father quietly takes on fewer duties.

I think there already have been some changes in the York family over the years. For one thing, Sarah's career in America collapsed a few years ago, so she spends more time in the UK. Andrew is no longer special ambassador for UKTI, so also he spends more time in the UK. Maybe because of this, he seems to have taken on a charity project that also involves Sarah and even his daughters (Key to Freedom, which is supposed to combat human trafficking). I've been following Andrew and Sarah on Twitter, and it's clear that they are supporting each other's charities - Sarah retweeted the Key to Freedom information, and Andrew (or whoever manages his account) retweeted a Children in Crisis appeal when Sarah asked.

Now we hear that Beatrice is taking on more patronages and doing more charity work, instead of focusing on a career.

I feel like Andrew, Sarah and the girls may be working together more closely on charity projects now that Andrew and Sarah are spending more time in England, and their daughters have grown up and graduated.

In the future, I think we might see more of the York family getting involved in charitable projects together (which I think would be a good thing!)

 

[FergieFan]

That's interesting - I hadn't really taken inbiard the full significance if this - if this is the 1st time Sarah has stayed in the actual castle at Balmoral since her DIVORCE, then this really is hugely significant in terms of her relationship with the family! Thanks for pointing that out!

In terms of the fall out from the "scandal"- I guess in light of what happened since with the News of the World and the Murdoch press, Sarah would probably get much more sympathy from the public in hindsight, now that we know wht those people were up to. Hopefully the Queen is a fairminded person who can see that that whole thing wasn't really Sarah's fault.

Just on the charities - Sarah has been a supporter for some time of Not For Sale, which campaigns on human trafficking and slavery, and it seems the Key to Freedom fits into this well - not sure if it was her or Andrew who were on that first. Doesn't matter really - the main thing is that I agree it's fantastic to see the Yorks collaborating on their various charities, and I hope we do see more of this!

 

[BritishRoyalist]

That's interesting - I hadn't really taken inbiard the full significance if this - if this is the 1st time Sarah has stayed in the actual castle at Balmoral since her DIVORCE, then this really is hugely significant in terms of her relationship with the family! Thanks for pointing that out!

In terms of the fall out from the "scandal"- I guess in light of what happened since with the News of the World and the Murdoch press, Sarah would probably get much more sympathy from the public in hindsight, now that we know wht those people were up to. Hopefully the Queen is a fairminded person who can see that that whole thing wasn't really Sarah's fault.

Just on the charities - Sarah has been a supporter for some time of Not For Sale, which campaigns on human trafficking and slavery, and it seems the Key to Freedom fits into this well - not sure if it was her or Andrew who were on that first. Doesn't matter really - the main thing is that I agree it's fantastic to see the Yorks collaborating on their various charities, and I hope we do see more of this!

According to Andrew Morton Book (since this came from Diana/Morton who knows how to believe) after a Confrontation at a Family BBQ in August of 1991 at Balmoral Castle Sarah had told Friends that it would be the last time that she would ever stay are Balmoral again! 1991 was the last time that she would ever be at Balmoral againuntil this year. Sarah and Andrew separated 7 months later in 1992.

 

[cepe]

According to the Daily Express (generally reliable)

It is not the first time the Duchess has stayed at the Queen’s estate since her 1996 divorce – she was there in 2005 and 2008.

Entire article

Sarah Ferguson flies in from the cold as Queen invites her to stay | Royal | News | Daily Express

The Daily Mail says the following

While she has visited Balmoral since her divorce, it is thought to be the first time she has been invited to stay in the main castle on the Queen's estate since her marriage ended in 1996.

 

[Dman]

Yes, Sarah has been invited to Balmoral a couple of times in the past. The Queen & Duke of Edinburgh must enjoy these family visits.

 

[Osipi]

Yes, Sarah has been invited to Balmoral a couple of times in the past. The Queen & Duke of Edinburgh must enjoy these family visits.

If I'm not mistaken, Sarah has spent Christmas staying at a residence on the Balmoral estate so that she could spend time with her daughters at Christmas. I don't think she was included in the family celebrations at all though.

 

[Dman]

Oh, I'm not talking about actual holiday visits. I'm talking about visits during the summer and on other regular times.

Sarah used to stay at Wood Farm on the Sandringham Estate during the royal Christmas holidays, so she could be close to her daughters.

 

[cepe]

Oh, I'm not talking about actual holiday visits. I'm talking about visits during the summer and on other regular times.

Sarah used to stay at Wood Farm on the Sandringham Estate during the royal Christmas holidays, so she could be close to her daughters.

That is the saddest thing.

 

[Dman]

Yeah I know. I'm just glad that Sarah is at least able to Balmoral again. You never know, she may even go and pay a private visit to The Queen at Windsor. Sarah lives next door at Royal Lodge.

 

[rmay286]

According to the Daily Express (generally reliable)

It is not the first time the Duchess has stayed at the Queen’s estate since her 1996 divorce – she was there in 2005 and 2008.

Entire article

Sarah Ferguson flies in from the cold as Queen invites her to stay | Royal | News | Daily Express

The Daily Mail says the following

While she has visited Balmoral since her divorce, it is thought to be the first time she has been invited to stay in the main castle on the Queen's estate since her marriage ended in 1996.

Yes, but the Daily Mail took the majority of their article (and photos) from the Daily Express article. If you read on, the Daily Express is the first one to mention the castle:

It is not the first time the Duchess has stayed at the Queen’s estate since her 1996 divorce – she was there in 2005 and 2008.

However, a royal insider revealed that on those occasions Sarah wasn’t invited to stay in the main castle, unlike this time.

I don't know who the royal insider is or how accurate the information is. If it's true, it's quite something...

 

[xenobia]

I found this article today. Quite interesting, I think.
Her Majesty requests... the presence of Fergie - Telegraph

 

[MARG]

When all is said and done, and when it comes to Andrew and Sarah an awful lot has been said and done, perhaps HM will acknowledge that for all they didn't handle manage their marriage well, they have handled their divorce in a truly exemplary way. They are wonderful parents and have lovely daughters and are, in short, a really terrific family. And that, if nothing else, deserves a bit of recognition.

And, let's face it, 20 years is a long time to be persona non grata. It smacks of the old accusations of a very dysfunctional House of Windsor. Although the fact that Harry was holidaying with them all for Andrews birthday earlier this year seems to show that the kids don't observe the "rules".

 

[Lumutqueen]

When all is said and done,

I'm sure that's an ABBA song

 

[Mirabel]

Although the fact that Harry was holidaying with them all for Andrews birthday earlier this year seems to show that the kids don't observe the "rules".

It shows that Harry doesn't, but I'm not so sure about the others.

And in Harry's case, if he is dating Cressida Bonas and she is Eugenie's best friend, he may not have much choice without making things awkward and uncomfortable.

 

[cepe]

Ive never thought of Prince Philip as a forgive and forget person. But when the York girls marry, they will want Sarah to be part of it. So now would be the right time to close the door on the past, IMO.

 

[AdmirerUS]

Ive never thought of Prince Philip as a forgive and forget person. But when the York girls marry, they will want Sarah to be part of it. So now would be the right time to close the door on the past, IMO.

Yes - or at least get to the point where, when they share the same air, they politely acknowledge one another and then move on each their own with whom they choose to chat. It's only good manners after all. Successful avoidance of those who annoy one is a talent learned early and used as needed.