FERGIE STANDS FIRM -The royal survivor turns 60

HOW HER LIFE HAS COME FULL CIRCLE

- Tony Powell

Fergie was born on October 15, 1959 at London Welbeck Hospital.

When Princess Beatrice marries Italian property millionaire Edoardo ‘Edo’ Mapelli Mozzi next year, her mother is set to make history.

At some point in 2020, the Church of England will alter the way it records marriages. Currently, only the father of the bride and his occupation are noted on the certificate, but that is expected to be modified to include the mother.

That means Sarah, Duchess of York, is likely to become the first royal mother recorded on a marriage licence. Piquing the curiosity of some is just what occupation Fergie, who turns 60 on October 15, may specify. Yes, she’s still a duchess, but she’s also been an entrepreneur, author, television presenter, brand ambassador, charity fundraiser, philanthropist – and more.

One of her friends says, “Sarah would love to have her name on the certificate and I’d expect that she’ll put her occupation down as duchess, but it’s true that she’s packed a huge amount into her life.

“She’s had her ups and downs but now it’s all ups – and she’s done that through sheer hard work. She wasn’t born with a silver spoon in her mouth.”

If not solid silver, it was heavily silver-plated. The second daughter of Major Ronald ‘Ronnie’ Ferguson and his first wife Susan, she went to private school and Ronnie was manager of the polo team that Charles, Prince of Wales was part of, so she knocked about with the royals from childhood.

When Fergie was 12, her mother left to live with her lover Héctor Barrantes, whom she ended up marrying and moving to Argentina to be with, leaving her daughter isolated. “I was raised by the housekeeper,” she has said.