Former royal butler Paul Burrell has shared claims about Sarah Ferguson and Prince Andrew’s behaviour that left Buckingham Palace staff furious during their marriage
A former Royal employee says one habit of Sarah Ferguson and her ex Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor left staff fuming. Fergie, 66, has been embroiled in the Jeffrey Epstein saga over recent weeks.
In an avalanche of emails released by the Department of Justice in the US, the former Duchess of York asked Epstein to “marry” her, offered to show his clients around Buckingham Palace and even took her daughters Beatrice and Eugenie to meet him.
She is now said to be living in exile overseas while she considers her options, having vacated Royal Lodge at King Charles’ request. And, according to former Royal butler Paul Burrell, trouble had been brewing with Fergie and Royal staffers at the very beginning of her introduction into the Firm.
In his memoir The Royal Insider: My Life with the Queen, the King and Princess, he claimed Andrew was “besotted” by his then-new wife who could “do no wrong”, reports the Mirror.
Yet, discussing tensions, he said: “But the staff were up in arms early in the marriage. From the beginning, the Royal newlyweds refused to leave their marital bed.
“The maids weren’t allowed to go into the bedroom to make the bed for days. When the couple did surface, they held lavish dinner, lunch and tea parties with all their friends.”
Paul, who worked under Princess Diana from 1987 to 1997, claimed this caused issues with exhausted staff members who reportedly preferred sticking to set meal times. He went on: “The kitchen staff were run off their feet. Even the Queen didn’t entertain so extravagantly. The Royal chefs were furious to be making food like it was an á la carte restaurant.
“They were used to serving food to the Queen and the Royal Family at set times. It was too much. The staff rebelled and protests were made to the Master of the Household who informed the Queen of her staff’s unhappiness.
“She had to intervene and put a stop to the lavish gluttony. After all, she despised waste, deciding in advance which food should be cooked for her each day. So why should Andrew and Fergie be different?”.
Paul, 67, then alleged that Andrew was “never easy” to work alongside, particularly for household employees.
The writer, who penned A Royal Duty, initially served as a footman to Queen Elizabeth before becoming King Charles’ personal valet. Nevertheless, he gained most recognition as Diana’s trusted companion.
In another section of his latest publication, he disclosed the amusing two-word moniker staff coined for Buckingham Palace.
Alluding to a boozing culture within the palace grounds, he penned: “It wasn’t just bed-hopping that went on in the palaces; there was a degree of inebriation which often helped people’s inhibitions.
“Forget Buckingham Palace, it was nicknamed ‘Gin Palace’ after the spirit that flowed freely through the everyday workings of the building. Gin, always, Gordon’s, was the drink of choice.”
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