Thank you all for your kind comments. Actually, I don't think my post was that good - my typing certainly wasn't, and I see that one sentence actually 'went missing' - not that it added anything significant, but it did make more grammatical sense! I've therefore made a couple of corrections.
To deal with some of the matters arising:
Precedence: Aliza, I think you are quite right about Public Precedence; this would place Sarah below Camilla and Catherine: the order being Camilla as wife of the heir apparent, Catherine as wife of the Sovereign's eldest Grandson and then wives of the younger sons of the Sovereign, which would Rank Sarah [if still married of course] before Sophie. [I've not dealt with the precedence of the Sovereign's daughter and granddaughters]. I'll get out my file from work and check this point.
As to why Andrew and Sarah divorced, a wise person once told me that no-one truly ever knows what happens in another couple's marriage. This is very probably true, but where Sarah is concerned, my own educated guess, based in part on my own observation, is that Sarah, who certainly married Andrew rather quickly, fell in love with her spouse's position [and all that went with it] as well as the man himself. [And yes, I do concede that this remark could possibly apply to others who have married into the BRF over the years]
And, as I have said before on other threads, I think that Sarah had a misleading idea of the BRF's lifestyle, as she was in effect extrapolating it on the basis of what she herself had observed when watching the more flashy world of the super-rich, both through motor racing and polo.
I've been criticised before on other threads when I write about the BRF's lifestyle being comparatively modest. The key word here is comparatively. The BRF are of course very, very wealthy. It is a lifestyle of castles and Palaces, of priceless royal jewels and beautiful works of art, all set against a background of devoted service. And you get to wear some lovely couture clothes. The food and drink is of the best. It's a lifestyle that most of us can only dream of. But, by the same token, it's a lifestyle that is NOT as flashy as that of the super rich.
For a start, there is actually no real dedicated Queen's Flight any more, although the Queen can of course call on the services of aircraft from the Royal Squadron [which other UK VIPs such as government ministers can use as well] but these aircraft are not used in the same way that the super rich use their private planes: the Queen does not 'jump aboard' a plane for a quick visit to Paris or to the South of France for some sun or Milan for some fashion shopping. And there are no Jacuzzis or other fripperies on the Royal planes. Pre-marriage, Sarah did observe - at a distance and no doubt somewhat wistfully - how the super rich of the motor racing and polo set behaved. Bernie Ecclestone had a huge private plane; ditto many of the American polo patrons. These billionaires indulged their wives [often no. 3 or 4!!] with all sorts of 'treat trips' and there were visits galore to the global glamour spots. Switzerland, Monte Carlo, Sotogrande... And then there were the yachts - and look how some plutocrats own more than one.......!
And these are the people who also set great store by having the 'right' accessories to accompany this lifestyle: the Ferraris, porsches, the Louis Vuitton Luggage etc etc etc The people for whom Gucci and Bvlgari and Chanel and Cartier open their shops after opening hours.....
It was basically a lot of fun and pleasure all the way. Sarah was reputedly enormously impressed when Lyn Wyatt [mother of Steve] began flying Sarah everywhere on the Wyatt private jet. Or at least, offering to.
And now look at the BRF. Planes are not meant to be used for private fun and pleasure jaunts and the press and politicians are stern when it emerges than (say) Andrew has been using a helicopter to take him to play golf. You don't hear of the Queen whizzing across to Paris for lunch on board her private plane. The Royal Yacht has long since gone. And couture clothes are usually seen in conjunction with Royal Duties! And even the Royal Luggage is that good, old fashioned, solid wooden type. [Interestingly, only Princess Micheal and Sarah have gone down the Louis Vuitton route!!]
Sarah obviously had her head turned by the Super rich, and apparently believed that either that this was how the BRF lived, or had the right to live, and therefore she was entitled to enjoy a similar right. But she was mistaken in all this. Royal allowances cover (generously) essential spending for Royal duties, but not for super rich style spending.
In my humble opinion, I think that when such luxuries did not come her way courtesy of Prince Andrew, Sarah's head was turned by Steve Wyatt. And presumably, when on the receiving end of such charm, I suppose Andrew looked a bit, well, boring by comparision. And he was often away on naval duties as well, whereas it seems that Messrs Wyatt and Bryan etc were around more often, all [at least initially] in fawning attendance on Sarah.
But the problem was that that none of Sarah's new found suitors were in attendance that long. Reputedly, Wyatt's mother Lyn read her son the riot act when it was pointed out to her that Steve's continued dalliance with Sarah could well have repercussions on Lyn's own social ambitions so far as the BRF were concerned. Whereupon Wyatt plus the jet soon disappeared over the horizon. And I daresay that now, 20 years down the line or so, Andrew does not seem so boring after all. And his means, though more modest in the immediate term when compared with Wyatt's, nevertheless seem large to Sarah when compared to her own now-meagre resources!! [Sarah of course having spent her way through millions over the past 20 years or so...]
I suspect as well that none of these super rich would have given Sarah a second glance had she not married into the Royal Family. Certainly, from my own observations, the Polo set pre-Andrew were not all flocking to Sarah's side: this was the girl known on the polo field by such unflattering names as Big Fat Fergie, Poor Old Fergie, The Ginger Lump etc. Horrible and cruel granted, but the problem is that for many years the Super Rich have placed great store on beautiful women....unless the ladies are very rich in their own right.
Weight issues. Yes, I do think that Sarah comfort-eats. Etched onto my mind is that Oprah image of her in the back of the car as it passes Buckingham Palace, gobbling sweetie [candy] after sweetie from the bag. Correct English behaviour requires that people only eat sweets modestly, one or two now and then, not gobble, gobble, gobble.
Incidentally, Weight Watchers. The offical line has always been that Sarah left Weight Watchers through her own choosing. However since they were paying her reputedly £1m per year, I have always doubted that the move came from Sarah. Since when has she ever turned down £1m? For what it is worth, I have read suggestions in the better papers that Heinz [Weight Watchers] did not feel Sarah was a truly appropriate spokeswoman for the brand, as her figure always seemed to be something of a struggle rather than a story of Weight Watching triumph.
Just my few random thoughts, and not meant to offend,
Alex
To deal with some of the matters arising:
Precedence: Aliza, I think you are quite right about Public Precedence; this would place Sarah below Camilla and Catherine: the order being Camilla as wife of the heir apparent, Catherine as wife of the Sovereign's eldest Grandson and then wives of the younger sons of the Sovereign, which would Rank Sarah [if still married of course] before Sophie. [I've not dealt with the precedence of the Sovereign's daughter and granddaughters]. I'll get out my file from work and check this point.
As to why Andrew and Sarah divorced, a wise person once told me that no-one truly ever knows what happens in another couple's marriage. This is very probably true, but where Sarah is concerned, my own educated guess, based in part on my own observation, is that Sarah, who certainly married Andrew rather quickly, fell in love with her spouse's position [and all that went with it] as well as the man himself. [And yes, I do concede that this remark could possibly apply to others who have married into the BRF over the years]
And, as I have said before on other threads, I think that Sarah had a misleading idea of the BRF's lifestyle, as she was in effect extrapolating it on the basis of what she herself had observed when watching the more flashy world of the super-rich, both through motor racing and polo.
I've been criticised before on other threads when I write about the BRF's lifestyle being comparatively modest. The key word here is comparatively. The BRF are of course very, very wealthy. It is a lifestyle of castles and Palaces, of priceless royal jewels and beautiful works of art, all set against a background of devoted service. And you get to wear some lovely couture clothes. The food and drink is of the best. It's a lifestyle that most of us can only dream of. But, by the same token, it's a lifestyle that is NOT as flashy as that of the super rich.
For a start, there is actually no real dedicated Queen's Flight any more, although the Queen can of course call on the services of aircraft from the Royal Squadron [which other UK VIPs such as government ministers can use as well] but these aircraft are not used in the same way that the super rich use their private planes: the Queen does not 'jump aboard' a plane for a quick visit to Paris or to the South of France for some sun or Milan for some fashion shopping. And there are no Jacuzzis or other fripperies on the Royal planes. Pre-marriage, Sarah did observe - at a distance and no doubt somewhat wistfully - how the super rich of the motor racing and polo set behaved. Bernie Ecclestone had a huge private plane; ditto many of the American polo patrons. These billionaires indulged their wives [often no. 3 or 4!!] with all sorts of 'treat trips' and there were visits galore to the global glamour spots. Switzerland, Monte Carlo, Sotogrande... And then there were the yachts - and look how some plutocrats own more than one.......!
And these are the people who also set great store by having the 'right' accessories to accompany this lifestyle: the Ferraris, porsches, the Louis Vuitton Luggage etc etc etc The people for whom Gucci and Bvlgari and Chanel and Cartier open their shops after opening hours.....
It was basically a lot of fun and pleasure all the way. Sarah was reputedly enormously impressed when Lyn Wyatt [mother of Steve] began flying Sarah everywhere on the Wyatt private jet. Or at least, offering to.
And now look at the BRF. Planes are not meant to be used for private fun and pleasure jaunts and the press and politicians are stern when it emerges than (say) Andrew has been using a helicopter to take him to play golf. You don't hear of the Queen whizzing across to Paris for lunch on board her private plane. The Royal Yacht has long since gone. And couture clothes are usually seen in conjunction with Royal Duties! And even the Royal Luggage is that good, old fashioned, solid wooden type. [Interestingly, only Princess Micheal and Sarah have gone down the Louis Vuitton route!!]
Sarah obviously had her head turned by the Super rich, and apparently believed that either that this was how the BRF lived, or had the right to live, and therefore she was entitled to enjoy a similar right. But she was mistaken in all this. Royal allowances cover (generously) essential spending for Royal duties, but not for super rich style spending.
In my humble opinion, I think that when such luxuries did not come her way courtesy of Prince Andrew, Sarah's head was turned by Steve Wyatt. And presumably, when on the receiving end of such charm, I suppose Andrew looked a bit, well, boring by comparision. And he was often away on naval duties as well, whereas it seems that Messrs Wyatt and Bryan etc were around more often, all [at least initially] in fawning attendance on Sarah.
But the problem was that that none of Sarah's new found suitors were in attendance that long. Reputedly, Wyatt's mother Lyn read her son the riot act when it was pointed out to her that Steve's continued dalliance with Sarah could well have repercussions on Lyn's own social ambitions so far as the BRF were concerned. Whereupon Wyatt plus the jet soon disappeared over the horizon. And I daresay that now, 20 years down the line or so, Andrew does not seem so boring after all. And his means, though more modest in the immediate term when compared with Wyatt's, nevertheless seem large to Sarah when compared to her own now-meagre resources!! [Sarah of course having spent her way through millions over the past 20 years or so...]
I suspect as well that none of these super rich would have given Sarah a second glance had she not married into the Royal Family. Certainly, from my own observations, the Polo set pre-Andrew were not all flocking to Sarah's side: this was the girl known on the polo field by such unflattering names as Big Fat Fergie, Poor Old Fergie, The Ginger Lump etc. Horrible and cruel granted, but the problem is that for many years the Super Rich have placed great store on beautiful women....unless the ladies are very rich in their own right.
Weight issues. Yes, I do think that Sarah comfort-eats. Etched onto my mind is that Oprah image of her in the back of the car as it passes Buckingham Palace, gobbling sweetie [candy] after sweetie from the bag. Correct English behaviour requires that people only eat sweets modestly, one or two now and then, not gobble, gobble, gobble.
Incidentally, Weight Watchers. The offical line has always been that Sarah left Weight Watchers through her own choosing. However since they were paying her reputedly £1m per year, I have always doubted that the move came from Sarah. Since when has she ever turned down £1m? For what it is worth, I have read suggestions in the better papers that Heinz [Weight Watchers] did not feel Sarah was a truly appropriate spokeswoman for the brand, as her figure always seemed to be something of a struggle rather than a story of Weight Watching triumph.
Just my few random thoughts, and not meant to offend,
Alex
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Just not my 'cup of tea'.
