Author Doubles Down on Alleged Friends With Benefits Claim About Sarah Ferguson and Diddy

Royal author Andrew Lownie doubles down on his claim that Sarah Ferguson had a "friends with benefits" relationship with disgraced mogul Sean Diddy Combs, telling London’s The Times he stands by an allegation he says is fully sourced by former employees of both.

A royal biographer just lobbed another grenade into the Sarah Ferguson orbit, and he is not blinking. The new, expanded paperback of Andrew Lownie’s book is stirring up fresh controversy — and yes, Diddy is somehow in the middle of it.

What kicked this off

Andrew Lownie, 64, told London’s The Times on Saturday, May 9, that he stands by an allegation in the latest edition of his book that Sarah Ferguson, 66, once had a friends-with-benefits relationship with Sean 'Diddy' Combs, 58.

"I stand by it. It’s fully sourced with former employees of P Diddy and Sarah Ferguson."

The claim appears in the expanded paperback of Lownie’s Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York, a 2025 tell-all that already reignited scrutiny of Ferguson and her ex-husband Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor over their links to Jeffrey Epstein.

What the book actually alleges

Lownie writes that Ferguson and Diddy first met at a 2002 party hosted by Ghislaine Maxwell and started a sexual relationship two years later. He attributes his sourcing to ex-staffers of both Diddy and Ferguson. A section serialized in the Daily Mail goes further, claiming Diddy bragged to colleagues about sleeping with Ferguson and allegedly once said he "could not wait until Fergie’s daughters come of age." (Ferguson and Mountbatten-Windsor, 66, are parents to Princess Beatrice, 37, and Princess Eugenie, 35.)

Lownie also claims Ferguson introduced both daughters to Diddy during a 2006 yacht weekend — Eugenie was 16 at the time — and that Ferguson and Diddy met multiple times at high-end hotels in Africa and Europe, including an eye-watering seven-star stay that cost £50,000 a night.

Us Weekly says it has reached out to representatives for both Diddy and Ferguson for comment.

The broader context (because this is messy)

Epstein died by suicide in August 2019 at age 66 after his federal arrest. Maxwell, now 64, was convicted in 2022 on sex trafficking-related offenses and is serving a 20-year sentence.

Diddy, meanwhile, is serving a 50-month sentence at FCI Fort Dix in New Jersey following his 2025 conviction on two counts of transportation for prostitution. He was acquitted of the more serious charges of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy after an eight-week trial.

Other claims Lownie has made about Fergie and Andrew

The hardcover edition of Entitled wasn’t exactly tame. Lownie wrote that Ferguson was "obsessed" with Kevin Costner and had crushes on George Clooney and Tiger Woods — with no suggestion anything happened with any of them. He also alleged that Andrew slept with "more than a dozen women" before his and Ferguson’s first wedding anniversary back in the 1980s, and that Ferguson confided to friends that the then-prince was "never there when I need him" and was "just not strong enough." Their marriage split in 1992, but the book digs into the lead-up.

Where this all led for Andrew and Fergie

The Epstein-related allegations revisited in Entitled helped spark another wave of fallout that ended with King Charles III stripping Mountbatten-Windsor of his royal titles in late 2025. Ferguson, in deference to her former husband, has stopped using her own titles.

Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested in February on suspicion of misconduct in public office, tied to allegations that he passed confidential financial information to Epstein while serving as a U.K. trade envoy from 2001 to 2011. He has not entered a plea.

The timeline Lownie lays out

• 2002: Ferguson and Diddy allegedly meet at a Ghislaine Maxwell party.
• 2004: Their sexual relationship allegedly begins.
• 2006: Ferguson allegedly introduces her daughters to Diddy during a yacht weekend; Eugenie is 16.
• Multiple years: Alleged hotel meetups across Africa and Europe, including a £50,000-per-night seven-star stay.
• 2025: Expanded paperback of Entitled publishes fresh details; Lownie defends his sourcing to The Times.

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