Sarah Ferguson

Born as Sarah Margaret Ferguson on October the 15th 1959, second daughter of Major Ronald Ferguson and his former wife, the late Mrs. Hector Barrantes. She has an older sister called Jane Louisa, who was born in 1957. Sarah Ferguson married Prince Andrew, second son of the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, at Westminster Abbey in July 1986 and thus became The Duchess of York. The couple has two daughters, Princess Beatrice Elizabeth Mary of York, born in 1988 and Princess Eugenie Victoria Helena of York, born in 1990. Ten years later Sarah and Andrew got divorced.

Sarah Ferguson has her own charitable Foundation, called Sarah Ferguson Foundation in which she supports projects which try to make a difference in the lives of suffering children and families throughout the world.

The Duchess was a founding supporter of The American Cancer Society’s "Great American Weigh In", an annual campaign (modeled after the Society’s "Great American Smoke Out") aimed at raising awareness of the link between excess weight and cancer. In March 2003 she joined the American Cancer Society at a congressional briefing. In 2007 the Duchess was named "Mother of the Year" by the American Cancer Society.

For the last ten years she was the U.S. spokesperson for Weight Watchers International, Inc. Sarah Ferguson remains a popular role model for millions who have weight problems. She has also published Energy Breakthrough; Reinventing Yourself; Win the Weight Game; Dieting with The Duchess; Dining with The Duchess for Weight watchers.

She has also written books for children, e.g. a book series about "The Adventures of Little Red", a book about "Budgie the Helicopter" and books called "The Royal Switch" and "Bright Lights" as well as her her autobiography My Story. In January 2003, she published What I Know Now: Simple Lessons Learned the Hard Way. She co-wrote two authoritative books about the travels of Queen Victoria with historian Benita Stoney. As an amateur photographer, in 2003 The Duchess published a collection of images for charity titled Reflections.

Sarah Ferguson is a correspondent to NBC’s Today Show and has served as guest editor on BBC Radio.

The film Young Victoria, produced by her in 2009, was directed by Jean-Marc Vallee, scripted by Julian Fellowes and executive produced by Graham King and Martin Scorsese, focuses on the period when Victoria became queen and her marriage to Prince Albert.

Sources

• Sarah Ferguson Foundation: http://www.sarahfergusonfoundation.org/?page_id=33
• Fergie Confidential: The Real Story [place? publishing house?]