Prince Philip considered 'vulgar' Sarah Ferguson 'persona non grata' at royal family: author

Royal experts are claiming to know what Prince Philip really thought of Sarah Ferguson. It is believed that he did not think that she was suited for royal life.

The Apple podcast "The Firm: Blood, Lies and Royal Succession" has been investigating a different historical royal scandal every episode. For its Aug. 2 episode, royal contributors discussed the Duchess of York's impact on the royal family. In it, royal biographer Jane Dismore said that the Duke of Edinburgh disliked Fergie even before she married Prince Andrew and became Duchess of York. She said of the duchess: "She's the one person that Prince Philip would not have anything to do with."

She claimed that Queen Elizabeth II's husband "didn't like Fergie" and Sarah Ferguson also "knew that she wasn't welcome when Prince Philip was around." It is said that she is also not welcome to join royal family members in public engagements because of the alleged scandals she has brought upon the monarchy.

Prince Philip's dislike for his daughter-in-law reportedly turned to hatred in 2010, when she made headlines for attempting to sell access to Prince Andrew for $500,000. Ultimately, tapes were published about the Duke of York by the British tabloid The News of the World.

The scandal it caused forced Sarah Ferguson to appear on a special episode of Oprah to defend herself. But it was after that incident that the Duke of Edinburgh allegedly decided that he has had enough of her.

"After that Prince Philip decided that she was just out of it, he would never deal with her, would not attend events with her," royal reporter Richard Mineards added.

"Royal Fever" author Cele Otnes chimed in and said, "He was so angry with her for embarrassing the family like that, that he basically declared her persona non grata at the Royal Family."

Moreover, Sarah Ferguson made headlines for the wrong reasons. She was caught in an uncompromising situation when photos leaked of her sunbathing topless with her toes being sucked by American financial manager John Bryan.

The podcast discussion also revealed that palace courtiers thought of the Duchess of York as being "vulgar" and "too common" for royal life. Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams claimed that her "idea of being royal was best summed up by one of the courtiers who said, 'vulgar, vulgar, vulgar.'" Sarah Ferguson reportedly did not have any "idea of what being Royal really meant. it wasn't just the awful lapses of judgment. It was an attitude to Royal life."