'I READ TO MY GRANDCHILDREN - AUGIE THINKS I'M HILARIOUS!'

CELEBRATING THE SUCCESS OF HER NOVEL, SARAH, DUCHESS OF YORK SHARES HER LOVE OF BOOKS AND BEING A HANDS-ON GRANDMA

- MICHELLE GARNET

Vivacious, warm, and charmingly self-deprecating, Sarah, Duchess of York is rarely out of the headlines, whether that's for her numerous charitable causes, her fashion choices, soul-searching or, naturally, her royal links. But despite all this, she has always made one thing abundantly clear, and does so again in her exclusive chat with OK! - family comes first, no ifs, no buts.

Ever since her high-profile divorce in 1996, Sarah has amicably co-parented her daughters, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, with the Duke of York, even staying in his Berkshire home while in the UK. Over the years, she has ensured the pair have been her number one focus, nurturing a close bond as mother, confidante, friend, and protector.

She often talks of her "deep gratitude" for her "glorious girls", and tells OK! how fiercely proud she is of them for carving out their own careers and, for Beatrice, overcoming the challenges of dyslexia. Of course, in the last 15 months, her role in their lives has expanded even further with the joyful addition of her gorgeous grandchildren.

In February 2021, Eugenie, 32, and her husband Jack Brooksbank, were delighted to announce the arrival of their son August Philip Hawke (or 'Augie', as Sarah sweetly refers to him during our chat). Although he's her first biological grandchild, Sarah reportedly already regarded herself as a grandmother to Beatrice's stepson Christopher Woolf, or 'Wolfie', five-proof indeed of her 'family first' mantra.

Last September, seven months after Augie's birth, Beatrice, 33, and her husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi welcomed their daughter, Sienna Elizabeth.