Princess Beatrice was seen paying her respects at the funeral of motorsport tycoon Paddy McNally, who previously dated her mother, Sarah Ferguson, and whom she once called her 'father figure'. However, the former Duchess of York, who has been keeping a low profile after the release of the Epstein files, was nowhere to be seen at the service.
Beatrice joined mourners at St James's Church in Sevenhampton, Swindon for a service of remembrance following Mr McNally's death last month, aged 88. The former racing driver made his fortune running corporate hospitality at Formula One events. He dated Ferguson for several years in the early 80s before she married ex-husband Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, but the pair remained good friends even after they split, with the ex-duchess once calling him her 'father figure'.
Final weeks and reported refuge
It is reported that in his final weeks, the tycoon gave refuge to Ferguson in his Swiss ski chalet after she fled the UK following the release of the Epstein files, which revealed the former Duchess had called the paedophile financier a 'supreme friend'. Speculation has mounted that Ferguson could be in line for a pay out from the tycoon's £600million fortune.
Beatrice appeared to attend the funeral alone and, according to The Sun, entered the church from a private road next to Mr McNally's country estate, where he died last month. It is believed a larger memorial service will take place in London later in the year.
Life and career of Paddy McNally
Mr McNally, born in Kent in 1937 but raised in Ireland, first became a motoring journalist and competed in several racing competitions before working for tobacco brand Marlboro, which was closely linked to Formula One. He then established the lucrative Allsport company, specialising in corporate hospitality at Formula One events. From this, he amassed a huge fortune with a property portfolio, including homes around the world, such as Sevenhampton Place in Wiltshire, which previously belonged to James Bond creator Ian Fleming.
He married wife Ann in 1967, but she died in 1980. In 1982, he began a relationship with Ferguson, who was 22 years his junior. They dated for three years until their split in 1985, and shortly after she struck up a romance with the then Prince Andrew - although she and Mr McNally remained close friends up until his death.
Ferguson's absence and Epstein fallout
In the Andrew Lownie book Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York, the author described Ferguson once remarking about Mr McNally: "He taught me so much about life. Whenever I wanted advice, I turned to him because he was so worldly-wise. He seemed to have seen and done everything."
He eventually sold his Allsport company in 2006 for $350million and was ranked 240th on the Sunday Times Rich List last year. Meanwhile, Ferguson has barely been seen in public since the release of the Epstein files and was last spotted at a £2,000-a-night chalet in the Alps. The King's former sister-in-law was tracked down to an Austrian bolt-hole after facing calls to speak to the US authorities about convicted sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein after the release of millions of documents associated with him shed new light on their relationship.
Epstein has been the downfall of her ex-husband Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who was stripped of his titles by the King because of "serious lapses of judgment" over his friendship with the late paedophile. Ferguson also lost her courtesy royal divorcee title and reverted to her maiden name, and recently lost the freedom of the city of York, after councillors voted unanimously to remove the honour over her links to Epstein.
