Sarah Ferguson has been staying with friends including Priscilla Presley amid the fallout from the Epstein Files because she is ‘effectively homeless‘, it has been claimed.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s ex-wife only has a ‘few’ people left who want to be associated with her, an insider has claimed today, but Fergie can reportedly still rely on the 80-year-old actress and wife of Elvis.
The former Duchess of York, 66, has not been seen publicly for months. Reports say she has been at a Swiss spa, villas in the United Arab Emirates, Portugal with Princess Eugenie and at a retreat in Ireland.
And now it is claimed Priscilla offered her a place to stay out of ‘sympathy’ after the release of the latest batch of the Epstein Files in late January, according to Page Six in the US.
‘Everyone’s telling her [Fergie] that now’s not a good time,’ an insider said. ‘A lot of people actually really like her, but being associated with anyone associated with Epstein just isn’t wise right now.’
Priscilla has had a large number of properties across the US over the years but her primary home is in Los Angeles.
Ms Ferguson had supported Lisa Marie, who lived in England between 2010 and 2016, during difficult periods in her life before her tragic death in 2023 aged 54. Fergie also spoke at a Graceland memorial event in Memphis, Tennessee, ten days after she passed away, quoting the late Queen Elizabeth II.
‘My late mother-in-law used to say that nothing [that] can be said can begin to take away the anguish and the pain of these moments, because grief is the price we pay for love. And how right she was,’ she told the mourners.
Priscilla has ‘not forgotten’ that kindness and is showing Fergie the same in the wake of the Epstein scandal, a source in the US claims, adding that the former duchess is now ‘effectively homeless’.
Priscilla Presley, arrives at Sarah Ferguson’s 50th birthday held at the Lanesborough Hotel in London in 2010. She is said to have offered a place to stay in the fallout from the Epstein Files
Sarah Ferguson speaks at the public memorial for Lisa Marie Presley on January 22, 2023 in Memphis, Tennessee. Presley, 54, the only child of American singer Elvis Presley, died on January 12, 2023
Sarah Ferguson and her friend Lisa Marie Presley who died in 2023 aged 54. Fergie said she was like a sister
Priscilla is believed to have been a member of the Church of Scientology, joining in the late 1970s after the death of her musician ex-husband Elvis.
Lisa Marie broke away but in 2017 Priscilla’s spokesman said she was still a member.
An insider claimed to Rob Shuter, the journalist and gossip columnist, that while Fergie has not joined the church, she is ‘looking for guidance’ amid turmoil in her life.
‘When your life gets turned upside down, you start exploring anything that might help,’ the source claimed.
‘Right now she’s just listening. But Priscilla is definitely influencing her thinking.
‘She’s looking for guidance and stability right now’.
The Daily Mail has asked Ms Ferguson, Ms Presley and the Church of Scientology to comment.
An insider told the Daily Mail that Fergie only has a ‘few’ friends left and Priscilla would be one of them.
Asked whether Ms Ferguson is in the US, the insider said if she was, she may be wary of staying too long amid calls for her to testify about her friendship with Epstein in America.
Fergie and Lisa Marie’s friendship was described by friends as not a fickle showbiz one – but a relationship built over more than 15 years, born of deep trust and support.
‘They hit it off on all sorts of levels,’ a friend of the Duchess said in 2023. ‘She talks of them bonding like sisters.’
Both had seemingly enjoyed an active social life in the same circle, a friend of the Duchess explained, saying: ‘[Fergie] was part of a group of friends including Bob Geldof and his wife; and (guitarist) Jeff Beck, who sadly died, and his wife Sandra, through whom she met Lisa Marie.’
Elvis Presley with his wife Priscilla and their daughter Lisa-Marie, pictured in 1970
Sarah revealed the depth of their bond in the hours after her friend’s sudden death on January 12 2023, when she wrote on Instagram: ‘I say hello to you every day, and I love you, my Sissy, and I will continue to say hello to you every day . . . You have been my devoted friend for many years, and I am here for your family to support and love them. I am deeply saddened, my Sissy, you are in my heart.’
Sarah was honoured to be asked to speak at Lisa Marie’s funeral, a friend said.
‘She didn’t hesitate. They allowed her to choose a piece, which she thought long and hard about, deciding that George Frost’s poem for his father, Sir David Frost, which includes the line, “It’s important to know that I have not gone, And I hope that, on you all, my light has shone,” was very appropriate.’
Pressure is mounting on Sarah Ferguson to appear before the US congressional committee investigating Epstein, it emerged this week.
Congressman Suhas Subramanyam who sits on the House Oversight Committee probing the paedophile’s child sex trafficking ring told the Mail on Sunday: ‘It is clear from the files we have that Sarah Ferguson and Jeffrey Epstein had a close relationship.
‘She once called Epstein the ‘brother I always wished for’ and Epstein provided her with financial assistance.
‘She should tell our committee what she knows about Epstein’s financial and sex trafficking enterprises.
‘If she has nothing to hide then this shouldn’t be a problem. No one, not even former royalty, is above the law.’
It is understood that a formal request to appear may be sent to Ferguson – who has not been seen in months – although legally she cannot be forced to testify.
Former President Bill Clinton and convicted madam Ghislaine Maxwell have already been hauled in front of the committee.
Last night lawyer Gloria Allred, who represents several Epstein survivors, told the MoS: ‘Sarah Ferguson appeared to have a close relationship with Epstein.
Pressure is mounting on Sarah Ferguson to testify in the US over her links to Jeffrey Epstein. Pictured (left-to-right): Princess Beatrice, Princess Eugenie and their mother in 2017
US lawmakers have repeatedly called for Ferguson’s former husband, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, to answer questions about his links to Epstein and she is now facing calls to do the same
‘She visited him at his office in Florida while he was serving his sentence after he was convicted of soliciting an act of prostitution with a minor. (He was allowed to sleep in the jail at night, and go to his office to work during the day.)
‘Reportedly she even brought her daughters to visit him in his home. She communicated with him by email. She asked him for money and advice.
‘She could provide valuable information to Congress. The survivors have indicated they are seeking truth, transparency and justice.
‘Sarah could help Congress and the survivors learn the truth.
‘She has indicated in the past that she cared about children in crisis and she created a charity to help them. Many survivors of Epstein were children in crisis.
‘She can help them and her own reputation by testifying under oath.’
Emails released as part of the three-million ‘Epstein Files’ reveal Fergie repeatedly begged Epstein for cash and visited him in Florida with daughters Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie.
In one email she told him: ‘I am at your service. Just marry me’, while in another she made a crude reference to then 19-year-old Eugenie being on a ‘sh***ing’ weekend.
Jonathan Coad, a media lawyer who previously represented her told the BBC there was ‘no chance’ she will testify.
Mr Coad said: ‘Of course she won’t and if she were still my client my very strong advice to her would be not to go.
‘It would be a disaster for her, for her daughters Beatrice and Eugenie and also for Andrew, as it would show him up for not going.’
The family of Virginia Giuffre, who accused Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor of sexual abuse, which he vehemently denies, also demanded she testify.
A spokesperson for Ms Giuffre’s brother Sky Roberts said: ‘If Ferguson knows anything she should testify in the United States immediately.’
