Duchess of York removed as Julia's House patron after calling Epstein 'supreme friend'

Julia's House, a children’s hospice serving Dorset and Wiltshire families, announced it has removed the Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson, as its patron. The decision follows the emergence of a 2011 email in which the duchess privately apologized to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, calling him a “steadfast, generous and supreme friend.”

A spokesperson for Julia’s House said: “In light of the Duchess of York’s correspondence with Jeffrey Epstein, it would be inappropriate for her to continue as a patron. We have informed the duchess and thank her for her past support.”

The duchess’s team declined to comment on the charity’s decision. The email surfaced after Ferguson had publicly denounced Epstein as making a “gigantic error of judgement” and acknowledged his crimes, for which he was jailed.

According to her spokesperson, the private message was sent under legal advice to defuse a threatened defamation lawsuit by Epstein. “She still deeply regrets any association with him,” the statement added.

Ferguson became patron of Julia’s House in 2018 and visited one of its hospices. She has since been removed from the charity’s website, where other patrons include football manager Eddie Howe, actor Nigel Havers and designer Jasper Conran.

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The charity concluded it was no longer appropriate for the Duchess of York to remain in her role after her private apology to Epstein contradicted her public stance.

This topic was reported by BBC News.

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