Sarah Ferguson has revealed how she used to hide her “huge personality” from the public, after her father told her she was “boring”, but found support from the late Queen.
The Duchess of York, 64, made the comments during a recent interview with Hello magazine, after she was asked if her recent experience with cancer had changed her outlook on life.
She revealed that it had made her start to be more herself. Speaking about her personality, he said he had previously “tried to keep her under the cushion”, revealing that her father, Major Ronald Ferguson, called her “boring” and told her she was “too much”, or even “too much”. Shut up, no one wants to hear from you.’
However, the mother of two said that after she was diagnosed with cancer, the experience gave her “a quick kick in the butt,” prompting her to wonder: “Are you going to start living now, at 64?” years, or Are you going to continue not living at all? You don’t have to be what everyone wants you to be: just be yourself.’
And not everyone wanted her personality to change: the late Queen Elizabeth II, before she died, told Sarah that ‘being yourself is enough.’
Sarah Ferguson (pictured, left) revealed that her father, Major Ronald Ferguson (pictured, right), told her to keep her gregarious personality a secret, calling her “boring” (pictured at El Dorado Polo Club in Palm Springs in 1988).
According to Sarah (pictured, left), the late Queen Elizabeth II (pictured, right) told her that being herself was “enough” (pictured in England in 1990)
Now, according to Prince Andrew’s ex-wife, she has made the decision to be herself. She explained that she “just doesn’t make excuses anymore.”
Her battle with cancer began last summer, when she was diagnosed with the disease during a routine mammogram.
Sarah underwent a single mastectomy, but six months later it was discovered she had malignant melanoma.
She currently undergoes regular checkups, and although she told Hello that “her doctors shouldn’t use the phrase ‘cancer free,'” her health outlook currently appears positive.
Just a few months after receiving treatment for breast cancer, in January this year, Sarah was diagnosed with skin cancer.
The Duchess had a mole removed from her body and tests determined it was malignant melanoma, which is the most serious type of skin cancer.
However, at the time, she was described as being in “good spirits” after the “distressing” news, which reached her just days after Christmas.
While she keeps close tabs on her health, taking precautions like mapping moles and visiting the doctor if she has any concerns, Sarah told the magazine that she believes her health is “better than ever” (before knocking on wood).
Sarah Ferguson (pictured at the 30th Cannes Gala at Cap d’Antibes last month) has revealed that her father once called her “boring”, prompting her to keep her gregarious personality somewhat under wraps .
Describing how difficult it was to deal with this condition, Sarah said it was the help of her loved ones that got her through that time.
Among them, he listed his daughters Princess Beatrice, 35, (as well as Beatrice’s stepson Wolfie, eight, and daughter Sienna, two) and Princess Eugenie, 34, and her two children: August, three years old, and Ernest, who turned one last week.
She said: “I have the most exceptional family and I have an extraordinarily large team and I have an enormous capacity for joy.”
Since the diagnosis, his new ‘mission’ is to encourage people to be attentive to their health.
After her cancer diagnosis, according to Sarah (pictured at the 30th Cannes Gala at Cap d’Antibes last month), she began to be herself and worry less about what people thought of her outgoing personality.
During the interview, Sarah also discussed the upcoming release of the paperback version of A Woman of Intrigue, her second work of historical fiction for Mills & Boon.
He reiterated previous comments he has made about the pride he feels in embarking on a new career, as a novelist, at 60 years old.
While on a media tour to present the hardcover version of the novel (which had a different title: A Most Intriguing Lady) in April 2023, Sarah said she was glad her writing career had taken off, which gave her another “claim to fame”. She also married a member of the royal family.
In an interview with OK! magazine, the royal said her new career ensured that marrying a member of the Firm was no longer her “only claim to fame.”
She said: ‘I feel very proud to have embarked on a new career when I was sixty.
After the death of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022, her two corgis Sandy and Muick (pictured) moved to the Royal Lodge, where Sarah (pictured) lives with her ex-husband Prince Andrew.
‘Not many people have that opportunity. Now, marrying into the royal family isn’t my only claim to fame, I’m a Sunday Times bestselling author. I feel like this is my moment. It’s very liberating.”
Sarah also answered the question many royal fans want to hear.
After the death of Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022, the Duchess adopted her corgis Sandy and Muick and came to live with her at the Royal Lodge in Windsor (the home she shares with her ex-husband, Prince Andrew).
Speaking previously, the 64-year-old described how the dogs were showing obvious signs of grief, after losing their human companion, the Queen.
But now things are going much better, he said. Sarah, who describes herself as “dog crazy”, said the two corgis are “exceptional” and that Sandy follows her everywhere. They are “national treasures,” she concluded.