Fergie's new courage I'M IN CHARGE OF MY DESTINY

In an exclusive interview, the duchess talks candidly about the lessons she’s learnt from the past and healing old wounds

Sarah, Duchess of York, has had her fair share of ups and downs. But now at 61, Fergie has forged a new career path writing novels, with Her Heart for a Compass hitting shelves on August 4. She talks to the Weekly about her book, becoming a grandmother, the benefits of therapy and why she’s feeling more confident than ever.

What was it that motivated you to tell this story?

I was asked to do a BBC TV programme, Who Do You Think You Are? where subjects delve into their family history. I didn’t end up going ahead with the programme, but it set me on the path of looking into my ancestry. I was delighted to find a long line of strong, red-headed Scottish and Irish women. They were all very single-minded and determined to be in charge of their own destiny. It looked like it was in the DNA. I was especially interested in the story of my great-great-aunt, Lady Margaret Montagu Douglas Scott. Why had she married so late? Why could I find out so little about her? I’d written non-fiction historical books about her period, the Victorian Era, in the past, and I decided to weave a fictional narrative around her.

Can you tell us a little bit about it?

Her Heart for a Compass is a story about duty, family and love, and Lady Margaret’s desire for independence in what was a very controlling society. The story charts her journey from the drawing rooms of Victoria’s court and the grand country houses of Scotland and Ireland to the slums of London and the mercantile bustle of 1870s New York.

It’s romantic, as you would expect from a Mills and Boon novel, but not risqué. I hope readers will appreciate the historical detail. My collaborator and co-author, Marguerite Kaye, and I really did our research and included many actual historical events and people.