Princess Diana's role in Prince Andrew and Fergie's romance

Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson fell in love in the summer of 1985.

The pair, old family friends, reconnected as adults while attending Royal Ascot — an event they have still attended together in recent years, despite being divorced.

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"He was utterly charmed by her, she was like nothing the royal family had ever seen before," 9Honey's royal columnist Victoria Arbiter told podcast The Windsors.

"Fergie was funny, and boisterous and brash and she approached life with such a zest for life and enthusiasm, and that in the beginning was utterly charming but ultimately that led to her downfall."

Fergie, 26, attended Royal Ascot as a guest of her good friend and fourth cousin Princess Diana.

While chatting together, Prince Andrew — who retreated from public life in 2019 over his friendship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein — offered Fergie some chocolate profiteroles.

Despite her telling him she was on a diet, he wouldn't take no for an answer.

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Nine months later, there was another question Fergie said "yes" to, with the couple announcing their engagement in 1986.

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"She and Prince Andrew fell in love very quickly," Arbiter said.

Prince Andrew chose a ring featuring 10 diamonds around a Burmese ruby, picked out as it complemented Fergie's red hair — a feature he loved about her.

During the couple's official engagement interview, Fergie pointed to Princess Diana as a source of help while she navigated marrying into the royal family.

"The Princess of Wales and I are extremely good friends, and we naturally talk about lots of different subjects," she said, adding: "We're very, very good friends."

They became the Duke and Duchess of York after they wed at Westminster Abbey in July 1986.

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The couple welcomed two daughters, Princess Beatrice in 1988 and Princess Eugenie in 1990.

However, just two years after the birth of their youngest child, their fairytale came crashing down.

In March 1992, the couple announced their separation and divorced in 1996, just a few months before Princess Diana and Prince Charles's divorce was also finalised.

However, the Duke and Duchess of York maintain a close friendship and even live in the same house, prompting speculation the pair could, one day, get back together.