Sarah, Duchess of York Current Events 14: February-October 2009

[Skydragon]

Originally Posted by Elspeth

I could see the point of all this "oh she's such a disaster" if that was the case. She has a bunch of charities, she seems to be a genuinely kindly and concerned person, albeit one who engages in fairly major and fairly frequent lapses of judgement,

Perhaps she and her charities are well known and appreciated in the US, here the only time she makes the news is for ill advised, 'I'll sort it out' programmes featuring ... Sarah.

Originally Posted by TheTruth

You mentioned AIDS charities earlier so I assumed it also concerned charities in your mind. So I don't think I misunderstood your post:

Perhaps I did not make it clear enough, yes I mentioned the original AIDS charity and if you think how much the founders of said charity achieved, they didn't seem to exhibit the 'me, me, me' factor exhibited by Sarah in her apparent quest for a cause to make her popular or appreciated here in the UK. They got off their behinds, as do thousands and got things done. Had Sarah been a celebrity, fine to hold dinners/events to raise money but why the need to be seen as the saviour?

Originally Posted by rmay286

And resenting Sarah just because she comes from a privileged background seems just as classist to me as complaining about the poor and underprivileged being a drain on society. Prejudice goes two ways.

IMO it is not a case of resenting Sarah for her privileged background, but for the interference of a person who could not have any idea what it is like to live on any council estate, good or bad. I should imagine with any large gathering of people, there are good and bad, for Sarah to focus on the 'really bad', is an insult to the good people that do exist there.

[free2rhyme]

Originally Posted by Skydragon

Perhaps she and her charities are well known and appreciated in the US

She really isn't known well here. She does things occasionally for the "Today" show and she was on "Celebrity Apprentice" two years ago for an episode with Piers Morgan but thats it.

[sthreats]

Originally Posted by Skydragon

Had Sarah been a celebrity, fine to hold dinners/events to raise money but why the need to be seen as the saviour?
IMO it is not a case of resenting Sarah for her privileged . I should imagine with any large gathering of people, there are good and bad, for Sarah to focus on the 'really bad', is an insult to the good people that do exist there.

I Agree. To me there are two problems with this whole 'Duchess in the Hood' concept. First no one wants to be talked down to. I find the whole rich girl talking to 'the hoodies' thing insulting. I have done community outreach since my teens. I don't go up to young people 'yo home boy I be here to talk about VD. ' It would sound fake and insulting. I speak in plain language with subject verb agreement and I get the point across.Second, having grown up in the ghetto(I never thought it was), I can understand the anger of the residents. In my old neighborhood there were drug types and street people but there were also many people like my father working 2 jobs,taking care of there home, and trying to give their kids a better life. There were community and church workers like my mother. BUT everytime there was any TV or newspaper coverage about the Northside it was about a drug bust or murder. Last week my mother's block unit gave out school supplies to over 200 kids. No coverage.I think Sarah had the beginnings of a good idea but the producers steered her the wrong way.

You don't have to'know what it's like to help someone. How many of us have been truly hungry. Yet we donate to food banks. Homeless? But we give to the poor and volunteerin soup kitchens. How many have had AIDS, cancer, been an abused child? Yet we make donations, do walks, and volunteer. You can read or hear about someone's plight and be moved to help them. Or like Princess Diana reach out with a simple handshake.

[Wisteria]

At last some very good sense, I believe that the first thing when helping someone in need, is not to make them feel humiliated.

[ada]

I don't doubt for a minute that Sarah's intentions are good, but she continues to cause embarrassment for the royal family

[Wisteria]

The Fergie backlash (part two): Estate erupts for a second time over TV documentary | Mail Online

[iceflower]

Here are some pics from May we haven't seen yet:

Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, during a portrait interview
to the Norwegian newspaper Dagbladet, May 19, 2009
I wonder if it's Sarah's house you can see or just an interview
place.

** Pic 1 ** Pic 2 ** Pic 3 **

[queenofthelight]

The photos of Sarah are beautiful!
Thank you, Iceflower!

Sarah Ferguson promises to persevere on controversial housing estate mission - hellomagazine.com (19/08/2009)

[dazzling]

Sarah Ferguson joins George and Oprah on the stellar guest list for Toronto Film Festival, 10-19 September 2009.
HelloMagazine Article

This week the Toronto International Film Festival released the guest list for September's ten-day event, and the 49-year-old's name is on it. Sarah's attendance is in honour of the festival's closing film, The Young Victoria, which she produced and which features her elder daughter Princess Beatrice, who won't be attending.

[Skydragon]

These are dark days for the psychological health of the House of Windsor and its marital castoffs. Not only might the Charity Commission launch an inquiry into allegations that Prince Charles uses his architecture charity as a private lobbying firm, but residents of a Manchester housing estate have come out in protest at the Duchess of York misrepresenting their lives as squalid. She got the most frightful pasting from callers on a 5 Live phone-in.

Royal, with issues? You need some paupers to play with | Marina Hyde | Comment is free | The Guardian

[Duchess]

Fergie and Andrew's Spanish hideaway: The divorced couple summer together at a luxury Spanish villa | Mail Online

[Mermaid1962]

The article mentioned having 18 people over for lunch, but otherwise we're left to assume that the two of them are alone in the house. I wonder how accurate that is? I can understand Sarah's wanting to "get away from it all" after the current spate of criticism that she's had. For a woman with such confessed problems with self-esteem, the back-lash must have been very hard to take.

Originally Posted by Duchess

Fergie and Andrew's Spanish hideaway: The divorced couple summer together at a luxury Spanish villa | Mail Online

[scooter]

My feeling is that they've been family for a long time, however one defines it.

[mktv2000]

Scooter - that is a really nice way to say it actually. "Family" is a word defined by many people, many different ways. It seems that they have long been each other's 'rock' and I'm sure their children are the better for it.

Royal Examiner Story - Yorks in Spain

[rmay286]

Originally Posted by Duchess

Fergie and Andrew's Spanish hideaway: The divorced couple summer together at a luxury Spanish villa | Mail Online

I saw a few things that might be wrong with this story. For one thing, it makes it sound as though Sarah "fled" to Spain because of the backlash over her TV show. But I think Andrew and Sarah and the girls vacation in Sotogrande every year around this time. One part of the article it even mentions that they're in Sotogrande every year. So this could be just a regular scheduled vacation, instead of a spur-of-the moment getaway from all the criticism. Also, Andrew and Sarah might not have "planned" to go away together...it could have been a family vacation that was planned for a long time, and at the last minute the girls got invited elsewhere so Andrew and Sarah decided to go alone.

The other thing is that the article makes it seem as though Sarah and Geir Frantzen are seriously dating and it's therefore shocking that Sarah's alone with Andrew. But I just have this feeling that Geir is more a "friend" (maybe with some romantic implications) than a boyfriend. Sarah herself has denied they are romantic. I think both Andrew and Sarah have male and female companions from time to time, but I don't think either of them is seriously dating.

[rmay286]

Here's a positive article about the Wythenshawe program amidst all the negative backlash: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/news...s-of-York.html

[Zonk]

Let's remember this is the Current Events thread for Sarah, Duchess York, and as a result several off topic posts have been deleted. This is not the forum to discuss ANY of the following:

1)The relationship of Sarah and Andrew, and whether or not they are still in love with each other, whether or not its a healthy relationship, why either can't move on...YOU GET THE POINT.
2) Diana, Princess of Wales;
3) Sarah's past indiscretions which have been discussed in great detail and happened MANY MANY years ago...its TIME TO MOVE ON;
4) Accusing Sarah of trading in on her royal name (it is after all hers);
5) Accusing a well known figure of committing an illegal act.

Any off topic, and speculative posts will be deleted without notice. Please contact a British moderator and/or TRF administrator if you have any questions via PM.

Zonk
British Forums Moderator

[Skydragon]

The howls of derision that greeted the first part of her documentary about trying to revitalise a Manchester estate dismayed Sarah, Duchess of York so much that it was cited as the reason that she decamped to Spain with her former husband, Prince Andrew.

A good review at last for the Duchess of York - Telegraph

[iceflower]

The Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson together with her daughters
Beatrice and Eugenie attend the final match of the polo "Gold Cup"
in the Santa Maria Polo Club, Spain, August 29, 2009
Sarah also gave the trophy to the winner team.


** zimbio gallery **

[ada]

[QUOTE=iceflower;985728]The Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson together with her daughters
Fantastic gallery, thanks once again iceflower