EXCLUSIVE: Sarah Ferguson Brutally Mocked Over Fear of Snakes Stopping Her From Moving to Australia — As She's 'Lived With One of World's Biggest Slimes for Years'
Sarah Ferguson's fear of snakes is getting in the way of a possible move to Australia.
Jan. 9 2026, Published 5:45 p.m. ET
Sarah Ferguson is weighing a dramatic move to Australia as her position in Britain grows increasingly precarious, but friends say a long-held fear of snakes is giving her pause.
And RadarOnline.com can now reveal critics are sneering that the most dangerous one she has faced is her ex, Andrew Windsor, the man she has lived alongside for decades.
Ferguson is said to be weighing a possible move to Australia as her position in Britain weakens.
Ferguson's uncertainty about a move Down Under comes amid sustained fallout from her past associations with Jeffrey Epstein and the continuing collapse of her royal standing following the removal of official roles and titles from her former husband, the ex-Prince Andrew, 65.
Windsor is preparing to leave Royal Lodge in Windsor for a privately funded property on the Sandringham estate, leaving 66-year-old Ferguson's future unresolved.
Renewed scrutiny followed the resurfacing of a 2011 email in which she described Epstein as a "supreme friend," contradicting earlier claims she had severed ties.
Several charities have since dropped her as a patron, and social invitations have reportedly dried up.
Sister's Visit Fuels Talk Of Australian Escape
Her sister, Jane Ferguson Luedecke, recently traveled to Britain to support her during a fragile period.
Against that backdrop, Australia has emerged as a possible escape route.
Ferguson's older sister, Jane Ferguson Luedecke, 68, lives there and recently traveled to Britain during what sources describe as a fragile period for her ex-duchess sibling.
One source said, "Jane didn't come over casually. She was seriously concerned about Sarah's state of mind and felt she needed to be physically present."
Another insider added the visit was about "keeping Sarah steady at a moment when many of her usual supports had fallen away."
'She Has a Visceral Terror of Snakes'
Ferguson recalled her lifelong terror of snakes whenever relocation talks turned serious.
A royal expert said the visit carried a longer-term message.
They said: "Jane came with the clear intention of helping Sarah through a very dark spell and floated the idea that she could start again near her in Australia."
The commentator added there was a belief Ferguson "might find a kinder atmosphere in Australia than she is experiencing in Britain right now."
Yet friends said one deeply rooted fear complicates the idea.
One said: "Sarah has always liked Australia as a concept, but she has a visceral terror of snakes, and that becomes a sticking point whenever the conversation turns serious."
Another source was blunter, adding: "She wants distance from everything she associates with pain, but the thought of Australia's wildlife genuinely frightens her."
'Andrew Is The Real Snake In Her Life'
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A source has warned that Andrew Windsor is a dangerous snake in Ferguson's life who should be feared.
Others, however, have been less sympathetic. One critic said, "It's hard not to see the irony. Sarah talks about being afraid of snakes, but she's been living with one of the world's biggest snakes for years."
Another source hit out: "Andrew is the real snake in her life, a literal slimeball, and he should be the real fear of her life."
Ferguson's fear of snakes is well documented. In September 1987, her reaction to one was captured during a charity event when a Burmese python was brought near her.
She recoiled in tears, saying, "I can't." Windsor, then her husband, told the handler: "My wife and I are not used to snakes."
Naturalist Jim Fowler, who held the reptile, said: "You tend to be repulsed by those things that are not like us. Fear is usually the lack of knowledge."
A British Embassy spokesperson confirmed at the time the then-duchess had "always been afraid of snakes."
Friends say the episode still looms large in her mind, especially when the prospect of her moving to Australia comes up.
"That moment has become shorthand among people who know her," one insider said. "Mention Australia, and she immediately thinks of snakes and shuts down."
