Fans might remember Sarah Ferguson for her toe-sucking scandal and her subsequent divorce from Prince Andrew. While the incident eventually resulted in her fall from grace and exile from the royal family, a biographer claimed that Fergie actually made a good first impression to Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip.

Back then, Prince Philip thought of Sarah as a suitable wife material to his second son. “They had not initially thought of her as a candidate for marriage to Andrew, but when they considered it the idea of having her in the Firm, as Prince Philip calls it, looked a most attractive prospect,” royal biographer Ingrid Seward wrote in her book “Sarah: HRH The Duchess of York,” which was published in 1991.

Sarah was viewed positively as she already knew what royal life entailed. “She came from a suitable background,” the author added. “She had mixed in the edges of the royal circle all her life and knew the ropes.”

Another plus for Fergie back then was her personality. “She was down to earth without any trace of the snobbishness they so disliked, and she was probably the first girl Andrew had been serious about who could be considered remotely suitable,” Seward wrote.

Meanwhile, it was very easy for Queen Elizabeth to bond with Sarah since they shared common interests. “The Queen liked Sarah. They got along well,” the biographer wrote. “Their mutual enjoyment of country pursuits, their love of dogs and horses, provided them with a common ground.”

However, the royal family’s good impression of Sarah quickly evaporated when troubles hit her marriage to Prince Andrew. Her relationship with the family further deteriorated when she was involved in one of the family’s biggest scandals.

Sarah and Prince Andrew separated in 1992. They weren’t able to patch up their marital woes as they only saw each other 40 days a year because of the Duke of York’s naval career. But five months later, compromising photos of Fergie and his financial advisor, Texan millionaire John Bryan, were published.

The shocking scandal hit the royal family hard, particularly Prince Philip, who can’t stand the embarrassment brought by the duchess to the family. “Up until that point, she had enjoyed warm rapport with her father-in-law but from that moment on the Duke of Edinburgh never forgave Sarah for the embarrassment and the humiliation that she had reaped,” author Katie Nicholl said on the Channel 5 documentary “The Royal Family At War.”

“He [Prince Philip] doesn’t like other people bringing the Queen into disrepute,” Ken Wharfe, Princess Diana’s former bodyguard, agreed. “I think he found Fergie's antics within the marriage to Prince Andrew one of those difficult royal pills to swallow.”

While Prince Philip is dead set on not wanting to meet Sarah again, the Queen is not as unforgiving as her husband. Her Majesty reconciled with Fergie in 2013, but she would only invite the Duchess of York over at Balmoral Castle whenever Prince Philip is not around.

Royal Family
Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother poses 04 August 1989 outside her London Clarence House residence for photographers with Queen Elizabeth (R), Sarah Ferguson, Prince Charles, Princess Diana and other members of the Royal Family on her 89th birthday. JOHNNY EGGITT/AFP/Getty Images

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