The ITV drama The Lady has sparked interest in the identity of 'The American' linked to Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York. The four-part series, which dramatises the life of Jane Andrews, Ferguson's former dresser, also offers a glimpse into the Duchess's personal life during the 1990s.
In episode one, a staff member at a royal event points out Ferguson (played by Natalie Dormer) with a man to Jane Andrews (Mia McKenna-Bruce). When Jane questions Prince Andrew's absence, her colleague replies: 'Cancelled at the last minute so she's lined up a replacement. She's playing with fire and she knows it.'
The American is believed to be Steve Wyatt, son of late Texas oil tycoon Oscar S Wyatt Jr. The pair reportedly met at the Houston Grand Opera's British Opera Festival in Texas in the early 1990s, forming an immediate bond despite Ferguson being pregnant with Princess Eugenie. Co-author of Ferguson's biography, David Leigh, claimed Wyatt was the 'main reason for the breakdown' of her marriage to Prince Andrew.
Leigh wrote: 'She met him at a time of her life when she was exceptionally low and felt Andrew wasn't supporting her. She went to Texas and she met a very handsome and rich Texan who was very attentive and loving and they very quickly fell in love. Andrew may have been her best friend, but Steve Wyatt was the love life of her life.'
The pair were often seen together, with Ferguson even inviting Wyatt to the Dance of the Decades at Buckingham Palace. In May 1990, six weeks after giving birth to Princess Eugenie, she flew to Morocco on a private jet with Wyatt and one-year-old Princess Beatrice. A photograph showed Beatrice sitting on Wyatt's knee. The drama depicts the late Queen Elizabeth II warning her daughter-in-law to cease contact 'before I bring disgrace on the family.'
Things came to a head in March 1992 when Ferguson and Wyatt separated, with him becoming engaged to Cate Magennis. Ferguson's separation from Prince Andrew was announced around the same time. The series reminds viewers it is a dramatisation, not a factual account.
