Sarah Ferguson and her two daughters were once so close they called themselves the "tripod" – but that doesn't mean they escaped tellings-off during their childhood.
The former Duchess of York once gave an interview to Canadian TV host Dini Petty on CTV shortly after her divorce from Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor in 1996, when she was 37.
She opened up about being a mum to her beloved daughters, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, and how she was teaching them to "show emotion" and "be themselves", saying: "I've been on this huge road of learning with mistakes and how to do things."
Sarah told one anecdote about a telling-off she gave younger daughter Eugenie after they went to a shoe shop together.
© GettyA week later, when Eugenie still hadn't worn the "lovely little pair of shoes", complaining that she "didn't like them" and they were "too small", Sarah sat down with her for a strict conversation.
Sarah told Dini in the interview: "I immediately stopped what I was doing, sat her down and said, 'I just want you to understand, I don't want you to go through the same mistakes mummy's made at 37. I want you to learn now at 6.'"
She added: "It taught me such a huge lesson. She's now feeling much better as she's not frightened to speak her mind."
Sarah Ferguson's relationship with Beatrice and Eugenie
Sarah, Beatrice, and Eugenie were known to be very close in the past and attended royal engagements together.
However, the disgraced Duchess has stayed away from the spotlight in recent months due to scrutiny over her friendship with Jeffrey Epstein.
It means she has not been pictured with her daughters since her granddaughter Athena's christening in December 2025, and it's not known when they last saw one another.
© GettySarah previously opened up to HELLO! about her family unit. She said: "A table goes best with four legs. A table can't stand on three legs, really, so you have the Duke and I, and the two girls.
"We're a family unit, and we lead by example. We support each other emotionally, and we support each other health-wise. At least every two weeks we sit down together and communicate, the four of us."
Speaking about her role as a mum, she added: "I think the one thing I've done incredibly well – although I say it myself – is that I'm a really good mum. And I think that my girls show that."
Has Sarah Ferguson met Princess Eugenie's new baby?
Sarah Ferguson is reportedly back in the UK after spending months abroad following her exile from Royal Lodge in Windsor.
It's not known if she's met the latest addition to her family – Princess Eugenie's daughter, baby Adelaide.
© Princess EugenieBefore her arrival on 3 August 2026, HELLO!'s royal editor Emily Nash said: "This baby will be born into very different family dynamics to those experienced by his or her older siblings
"While their grandmother and grandfather have spent plenty of time with August and Ernest, they are likely to keep more of a distance this time around, although I’m sure Sarah will find it very hard to stay away from a new grandchild."
