AceShowbiz - Sarah Ferguson calls Prince Andrew a "good man." The Duchess of York wed the prince - who was stripped of his public duties following revelations over his relationship with billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein and sexual assault allegations made by Virginia Giuffre, which were later settled out of court - in 1986 but they split in 1992, though have remained close friends, and the author has insisted that the spotlight needs to "come off him" so he can rebuild from his scandals.

"He's such a good man. He's a kind, good man. And I think the spotlight needs to come off him and let him get on with his life to rebuild," she said on UK TV show "Good Morning Britain".

Fergie - who has daughters Princess Beatrice, 34, and Princess Eugenie, 33, with Andrew - will not be attending the upcoming coronation of her former brother-in-law King Charles because the event is a state occasion and went on to insist that she is still "enjoying being divorced from" Andrew but believes that organisers are "doing a great job" of unifying the royal family following the passing of Queen Elizabeth last September.

She added, "It's a state occasion and being divorced you can't have it both ways. I'm enjoying being divorced to my husband not from my husband. The great thing about this moment in time is the unity of family - I think they're doing a great job of unifying the family. I'm not there in the state occasion but that doesn't mean I'm not there privately. "

Meanwhile, Fergie - who has headed up a number of business ventures since her time in the firm - has recently released her second novel "A Most Intriguing Lady" and recently admitted she wants to open a bookshop so she can support the "independent" sector of the field.

Speaking to the Daily Mail newspaper's Eden Confidential column, she said, "I am seriously wanting to open my own bookshop. I really want to support the independent bookshop sector."