The thank you letters have already been written and those multiple changes of clothing — so much a part of a Sandringham Christmas — have been packed away for another occasion.
And judging by the warm words from old friends, an invitation to the next big Windsor gathering to a woman not simply ostracised, but also blamed for many of the ills heaped on the Royal Family, won’t be long coming.
She’s been here before, of course, but no one has perfected the art of the comeback quite like the Duchess of York. Usually, one step forward is followed by a misstep and, as if she is a player in a game of snakes and ladders, she slithers back down to start again.
But there was something about her presence and her conduct as a guest on the King’s Norfolk estate last week that suggested that, this time, she won’t be making those same mistakes.
Confident with well-wishers who gathered to exchange seasonal greetings with Charles and his extended family, but not over-confident.
Overjoyed: Fergie (second left) at Sandringham this Christmas with the royals
Sarah Ferguson gestures as she attends the Royal Family’s Christmas Day service at St. Mary Magdalene’s church
Princess Diana with Sarah Ferguson wearing Winter clothing in September 1988
Prince William and Kate and their three children were the big draw but there was an appreciation of the duchess from the crowd that went beyond mere curiosity. Her redemption has been a long time coming.
The woman once amusingly dubbed a breath of fresh air whose indiscretions and extravagances — not to mention two flirtations with financial catastrophe — threatened to blow the whole royal apparatus apart, has come a long way.
So, this was not fun-loving Fergie of old who, days after I witnessed what turned out to be her last public appearance at a royal Christmas 32 years ago, astounded fellow passengers in the first-class compartment of an American Airlines trans-Atlantic jet by putting a bag over her head and sticking out her tongue.
All those years of exclusion that followed, when she was sequestered alone in an estate cottage while the festivities went on in the big house without her, suddenly seem a distant memory.
Those were the days when Prince Andrew would collect their daughters on Christmas morning to go to church and then lunch with their grandmother the Queen before returning them after tea to their mother.
Just what has happened and why the sea-change in family attitudes that were encapsulated by Prince Philip, who described her as ‘pointless’ (and a lot worse besides) and whose disdain for his former daughter-in-law was such that he once vaulted a sofa in his haste to get away from her?
For the answer, one needs to look no further than the man who was striding alongside her in that churchgoing group on Monday — her ex-husband and devoted companion Andrew, the Duke of York.
In the four years since Andrew’s fall from grace, no one has been more supportive than the former publishing company Girl Friday with whom he fell in love as they fed each other profiteroles at a Royal Ascot house party almost 40 years ago.
Separated after less than six years of marriage and divorced soon after, they have remained contentedly together ever since. They have lived — off and on — under the same roof, and when Andrew suffered the humiliation of having to give up his royal duties over his links with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, Sarah publicly defended him.
Deprived of his military affiliations and charitable patronages and mired in the scandal over claims — that he denied — of having sex with teenager Virginia Giuffre (with whom he later reached a multimillion-pound settlement), Andrew’s public image cratered.
He became an embarrassment to the Royal Family and, after his calamitous Newsnight interview, in which he failed to express sympathy for Epstein’s victims, a laughing stock.
Sarah Duchess of York and Prince Andrew on the balcony of Buckingham Palace during their wedding on July 23, 1986
The Duchess of York on Loose Women on ITV on April 5, 2023
But the loyalty of his ex-wife has been unquestioning. And it is that, I understand, that was at the heart of the simple gesture from the King to bring his one-time sister-in-law in from the cold.
‘He has always prized allegiance and he appreciates all Fergie has done for his brother,’ says a friend of Charles. ‘It may be an exaggeration to say she has been keeping him alive, but she has certainly been keeping him sane. Imagine what Andrew would be like without Sarah who, despite everything, is one of life’s optimists?’
Andrew, say friends, could easily have become a recluse, doing nothing but binge-watching television. Fergie refused to allow that to happen. She encouraged him to exercise and to continue with his love of horse riding.
The King also admires the way the duchess has gone about restoring her own reputation while keeping her family together.
Thirty years ago, she was the most reviled person in Britain — an overweight, overwrought loose cannon. Her marriage had come to an inglorious end amid tales of infidelity, she had been pictured topless having her toes kissed by her ‘financial adviser’ and her profligacy had left her £4 million in debt.
The Royal Family cast her out. It was a situation that would have crushed most people and she admits it did drive her to the brink of a nervous breakdown. Somehow Fergie survived. She took herself in hand, cleaned up her private life, shed four stone, went to work and paid off her debts.
And then it happened all over again. More extravagance and more debts from money-making schemes gone wrong, compounded this time by her falling victim to a grubby tabloid sting in which she attempted to sell access to Prince Andrew in exchange for £500,000.
The yo-yo of downfall and dishonour followed by survival and rehabilitation became a well-worn path for her. But more than a decade later and she has, as one friend puts it, ‘kept her nose clean, very clean’.
Then it was Andrew who bailed her out, helping to pay off her debts and allowing her to move back into Royal Lodge, where she has her own suite of rooms. Now older and wiser — she will be 65 next year — Fergie has grown into a considerate mature woman.
The couple’s daughters, Beatrice and Eugenie — now with children of their own — were also part of the King’s decision-making process. ‘He has always been extremely fond of his nieces,’ says one of his circle.
The King has also been touched with the way in which Fergie has dealt with setbacks over her health. After a routine mammogram earlier this year, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a mastectomy and reconstructive surgery.
Rather than say nothing about such an upsetting issue as royals traditionally do, Fergie spoke out and her action is said to have encouraged more women to make screening appointments.
Princess Diana and the Duchess Of York watch a polo match in Windsor, Berkshire
Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, arrives to attend the Christmas day service at St Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham
So, what are we to make of Charles’s kingly gesture and what does it tell us about Fergie’s future? ‘I think we will see more of Sarah at those extended family events,’ says a friend. ‘Don’t expect to see her on the Buckingham Palace balcony after Trooping The Colour, but Royal Ascot on the other hand could feature.’
There is another intriguing part to this new dynamic — the role of Queen Camilla. ‘It’s in no small part thanks to the new Queen that the Royal Family treat newcomers very differently these days. She’s also one of those “let bygones be bygones” people and has a lot of time for Fergie whom she finds amusingly eccentric.’
One thing, however, is most certainly not happening: the duchess is not resuming a royal life. She has her own charity streams. Earlier this month she went on an unheralded visit to Burnley, where her Sarah’s Trust charity distributed presents to underprivileged children. She has also made three visits to Ukraine, accompanying lorry-loads of aid.
Away from philanthropic matters, there will be more television — she appeared on Loose Women and Lorraine Kelly’s show this year as well as co-hosting This Morning — and more Mills & Boon romantic fiction, talks are under way to adapt her first two books into potential screenplays.
As for Andrew, having Sarah as a more visible presence at his side may not transform his reputation overnight but it may be a start.