Fergie taps into personal lineage for her inspired first novel
Sarah ‘Fergie’ Ferguson has a new fictional novel coming to the shelf, which is inspired by her family history.
The Duchess of York has taken on the challenge of portraying her great-great-aunt Lady Margaret Montagu Douglas and is set to be released in August.
The former wife of Prince Andrew has released children's books in the past, but became inspired for her new novel when she was “researching” her ancestry.
“Digging into the history of the Montagu-Douglas Scotts, I first came across Lady Margaret, who intrigued me because she shared one of my given names,” she said.
“But although her parents, the Duke and Duchess of Buccleuch, were close friends with Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, I was unable to discover much about my namesake’s early life, and so was born the idea which became Her Heart for a Compass.
“With real historical events and facts to hand, my imagination took over.”
The 61-year-old went on to say: “I invented a history for her that incorporated real people and events, including some of my other ancestors.
“I created a friendship between my heroine and Princess Louise, Queen Victoria’s sixth child, and I drew on many parallels from my life for Lady Margaret’s journey.
“I have long held a passion for historical research and telling the stories of strong women in history through film and television.
“I am proud to bring my personal brand of historical fiction to the publishing world.”
Despite Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson divorcing in 1996, the pair still remain great friends and live together at the Royal Lodge in London.