For the last 24 years, Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, has spent Christmas Day on her own as her daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, are with their father, Prince Andrew, and the rest of the royal family in Sandringham.
Since the Duchess of York divorced from the Duke of York, Sarah, more popularly called Fergie, has carried on with her own tradition every Dec. 25 by watching a movie at home and then waiting for the news to watch her daughters. Television broadcasters in the U.K. usually run the royal family's Christmas morning walk to the church near the Queen's estate to hear the service and then greet the public waiting for them.
But this year could be the one time Fergie gets to ditch her movie marathon for Christmas. According to Daily Express, the York household might spend the holiday together in line with the government's guidelines for COVID-19 safety.
Fergie has been living in the Royal Lodge with Prince Andrew despite their divorce, which accounts for one household. Beatrice and Eugenie live in two separate households with their husbands, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi and Jack Brooksbank.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that families within three households only might form a Christmas bubble. Because of this, the Queen has canceled the family gathering and the church visit in Sandringham, allowing the rest of the royal family to make their own Christmas plans.
It is understood, therefore, that Fergie will finally have Christmas Day with her daughters in over two decades. To prepare for this rare occasion, the Duchess of York gave the public a glimpse of the holiday decorations at the Royal Lodge in an Instagram post.
This special holiday comes as Fergie is excited about the arrival of her very first grandchild. Princess Eugenie and Jack are anticipating the birth of their baby in early 2021.
Meanwhile, Fergie has gone on record to say that she doesn't take it against the royal family if she hasn't spent Christmas Day with Beatrice and Eugenie in 24 years. In an interview in 2018, the Duchess of York said that she's happy to share her daughters with the Queen during the summer and the Christmas holidays because she knows Her Majesty adores Beatrice and Eugenie.
Fergie has not been invited to royal family events since she is technically not part of the family anymore as a divorcee. She didn't get an invite to the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton in 2011, and she was not on the guest list of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding reception because it was Prince Charles footing the bill.
Insiders said that while Prince Charles and Prince Philip do not have a good relationship with the Duchess of York, the Queen has started having tea with Fergie since 2018. Whenever Her Majesty stayed at Windsor Castle, she keeps in close touch with her former daughter-in-law.
