Fergie’s mounting money woes

THE rumours of money troubles which have dogged the Duchess of York since her divorce from Prince Andrew have gathered pace recently.

Only last month it emerged she was facing legal action from a leading law firm over a substantial unpaid bill thought to be as much as £100,000.

Davenport Lyons issued proceedings against her for its work to turn her children’s books into an animated television series.

The Duchess had hoped to bring characters from her books, Tea For Ruby and Little Red, which have been highly popular in America, to the screen with Handmade. But the plans appear in doubt after Handmade – the group behind popular films including Withnail And I, Time Bandits and more recently 50 Dead Men Walking – asked for its shares to be suspended in January due to uncertainty over its financial position.

Last year, it was claimed her plans to celebrate her 50th birthday had been scaled down because of money concerns.

She eventually marked the milestone with dinner in London surrounded by family and friends, including her daughters, princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, and her ex-husband.

It has been reported a party for 300 guests at Royal Lodge in Windsor had been cancelled amid fears she was going bankrupt.

But a spokeswoman said plans for the birthday celebration were always going to be small and denied she was going bankrupt.

The week before her birthday it emerged the New York-based company Hartmoor LLC, set up to manage her US career in publishing, public speaking and media work, was expected to close with debts of around £600,000.

The Duchess was a major shareholder in the firm and the winding up of the business followed the ending of a contract in 2007 she held with Weight Watchers.

She is not the only member of her family to struggle with their finances. Her late father, Major Ronald Ferguson, was forced to deny he had money problems.

In 1991, he auctioned off his beef herd, established in 1948 by his father Colonel Andrew Ferguson, for £65,000 and a few months later sold 130 acres of land opposite his Hampshire home in the picturesque village of Dummer, near Basingstoke, for £240,000.