By Isabella Torregiani
1:23pm PST, Feb 19, 2026
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Sarah Ferguson previously compared her family to a four-legged table, explaining to
HELLO! in 2017, "A table can't stand on three legs; we support each other emotionally and we support each other health-wise."
That sense of stability has remained intact despite the fallout from her and her ex-husband,
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, over their association with
Jeffrey Epstein.
According to reports, her daughters,
Princesses Beatrice and
Princess Eugenie, remain "very sympathetic" toward her.
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Additional emails from the Epstein files show that the late financier paid for Sarah Ferguson and her daughters to fly to the U.S. for lunch at his Palm Beach mansion just days after his release from prison in 2009, when the sisters were 19 and 20.
In other communications with Jeffrey Epstein, Sarah made a crude joke about Princess Eugenie's love life, referred to him as "the brother I have always wished for," and wrote, "Just marry me."
Sources tell
HELLO! that the release of these messages has rattled both the princesses and the family unit they once considered unshakable.
"They must be overwhelmed and aghast by this," royal author
Robert Jobson, who knows the family well, told the publication. "What was she thinking? Taking her daughters — the late Queen's granddaughters — to meet this vile convicted criminal? It really beggars belief."
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Although the sisters have been publicly humiliated, a family friend insists that Princess Eugenie, 35, co-founder of the charity The Anti-Slavery Collective, has not severed ties with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
Meanwhile, Princess Beatrice, 37, was recently spotted horseback riding at Windsor with her father and her four-year-old daughter, Sienna.
"The sisters are not abandoning their father. They aren't turning their backs on him. But everything is obviously very strained and hard," the friend told HELLO!.
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The former Duke of York, Prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, 66, lost his titles in October and has since moved from his 30-room Royal Lodge home on the Windsor estate to a small cottage on the Sandringham estate.
His relocation followed the release of photographs placing him at Jeffrey Epstein's New York mansion, alongside allegations from a woman who stated she had been trafficked by the late convicted offender — allegations Andrew has denied.
Legal troubles for the former Duke of York escalated when he was arrested at Sandringham on suspicion of misconduct in public office for allegedly giving information to the late financier.
"As part of the investigation, we have today arrested a man in his sixties from Norfolk on suspicion of misconduct in public office and are carrying out searches at addresses in Berkshire and Norfolk," authorities said in a statement per The Sun. "The man remains in police custody at this time.
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Meanwhile, royal insiders tell HELLO! that Sarah Ferguson, 66, has been keeping a low profile at an overseas spa as she contemplates her next steps and where she will live.
"She is in a bad way and feeling very guilty," Robert Jobson said. "The last time I was in touch with her, she was worried about her mental health and mulling over the 'what ifs'."
He continued, "The girls have been very sympathetic to her, but that might start to unravel. You have to wonder if they will ever be seen in public with her again."
Princesses Beatrice and Princess Eugenie also spent this past Christmas with King Charles, instead of their parents, which "speaks volumes."
"It might be hard to rebuild what they had. It's sad for them but the real tragedy is for the victims," he added.
