Sarah Ferguson Breaks Silence on Not Attending King Charles III's Coronation

Sarah Ferguson is spilling the tea on how she feels about not attending King Charles III's coronation.

The Duchess of York—who was previously married to the king's brother Prince Andrew—recently explained why she won't be at the event.

"No I'm not [going] actually," she explained on Good Morning Britain April 20, "'cause it's a state occasion. And being divorced, I don't think you can have it both ways."

That's not to say that Sarah hasn't remained close with her ex, with whom she shares daughters Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie. However, she's looking towards the future, which includes focusing on her writing career.

"So, I am divorced, and I'm really loving being divorced to my ex-husband—not from my ex-husband, it's quite a differentiate," she continued. "And also getting out there as a new novelist—second book, or for noveling—but also to really say, 'It's OK. I can start a new career now.' And I really hope that many people watching will go, 'Right, we get this. We can do this. Why are we saying we're too old or we're retiring?' No! Get out there and seize it.'"

Even though Sarah—whose ex-husband Prince Andrew stepped back from his royal duties in 2019 over his former association with late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein—won't be at the coronation, she'll be celebrating King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla from afar on the big day.

"I think that the great thing about this moment in time is the unity of family," the duchess added. "I think that Charles and Camilla are doing an exceptional job at unifying the family. And just because I'm not there on the state occasion, but in private I can be there. And that's a lovely feeling to be part of the family. It really is. As I said, you can't have it both ways. You mustn't sit on the fence. You're either one in or out, but don't muck around."

Despite no hard feelings on Sarah's end, there has been tension between other members of the family in the lead-up to the coronation. Prince Harry has publicly spoken about his relationship with his father King Charles III and brother Prince William, including in his memoir Spare and Netflix docuseries with wife Meghan Markle Harry & Meghan.

While it was initially unclear if the Duke of Sussex would be attending the coronation, a rep for him and the Duchess of Sussex recently confirmed that Prince Harry will attend the service at Westminster Abbey in London on May 6. However, the rep noted that Meghan will be at the couple's home in California with their children Princess Lilibet, 22 months, and Prince Archie, whose fourth birthday falls on the same day.