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She’s been in hiding since leaked emails revealed the extent of her close relationship with paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein, yet Sarah Ferguson, the former Duchess of York, broke her silence with an extraordinary statement this week.
The subject matter? Not the emails in which she pleaded with Epstein to hire her as his “house assistant”, or those in which she called him a “legend” and told him to “just marry” her.
Rather, Fergie was responding to claims she had once considered cloning the Queen’s corgis for a TV show.
Fergie and her disgraced ex-husband Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor had been gifted the dogs – Sandy and Muick – following the death of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022.
A mere eight months later, it was claimed Fergie held talks with TV bosses from Halcyon Studios in Los Angeles, where the idea of her selling cloned corgis to “dog lovers around the world” was mooted.
“With the help of a team of scientists and investors, Fergie sets up a company called The Queen’s Corgis, which aims to clone the Queen’s corgis and sell them to other dog lovers around the world,” the synopsis for the proposed reality show read, as reported by the Daily Mail.
“But as she dives deeper into the world of genetics and cloning, Fergie realises that her business venture is not without controversy…
“Ultimately, (viewers) will be left with a sense of hope and wonder, as they witness the incredible bond between humans and animals, and the enduring legacy of the Queen’s beloved corgis.”
A source claimed that Fergie appeared to be “up for anything provided she was paid”, but that discussions “fizzled out”.
Now, representatives for the beleaguered former duchess have spoken out to clarify what really went on.
“[Sarah] never progressed any discussions with Halcyon Studios, which were engineered by others, and withdrew from them of her own accord,” her spokesperson said in a statement.
“She listens to TV proposals all the time but that doesn’t mean she is going to go through with them.
“If she had briefly seemed enthusiastic, that is just who Sarah is. Sarah never had any intention of monetising the corgis.
“She had been looking at doing a TV show about dogs for many years, long before she had the corgis and long before she was introduced to Halcyon Studios,” the spokesperson added.
“She owns other types of dogs also. Any resulting show would never have been about the corgis alone.”
The timing of Fergie’s “clone” rebuttal is somewhat baffling, given that she hasn’t been seen in public since December 2025 when she was snapped at St James’ Palace attending the christening of Princess Beatrice’s daughter Athena.
Since then, there have been conflicting reports about her whereabouts – there was a suggestion she was in Northern Ireland, then at a chalet in Verbier, and it’s also been reported that she spent time at a hugely pricey recovery clinic in Zurich.
“The thing with Sarah though is if she wanted to be seen, she would be,” The Sun’s Royal Editor Matt Wilkinson said on A Right Royal podcast, adding that it was “amazing” that someone as famous as the former Duchess of York “can find a way to hide away”.
