Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, occupies a more ambiguous position in Entitled than Prince Andrew. While Lownie is highly critical of her financial irresponsibility, poor judgment, and relentless pursuit of publicity, his portrait is noticeably less condemnatory than his treatment of Andrew. The author depicts her as an impulsive, emotionally needy, and often self-destructive figure whose financial recklessness and need for validation were amplified by her marriage into the Royal Family. 

Lownie attributes Sarah’s early popularity with the British public to her non-conformity with the Royal Family’s reserved image. The author emphasizes the spontaneity and sense of fun that distinguished her from the more restrained conventions of royal life, noting that “[t]he public loved her eye-rolling talent for silly faces, sense of humour, irreverence, unpretentious manner, ebullience and the fact that, in contrast to the Princess of Wales, she appeared not to care about her clothes” (64).

Although initially seen as a refreshing presence, Sarah’s behavior soon attracted negative press and Palace disapproval. The exuberance that had made her popular increasingly came to be interpreted as evidence that she lacked the dignity expected of a senior royal. The shift in opinion illustrates the monarchy’s often unforgiving relationship with personality and public image. Unlike Andrew, whose reputation deteriorates primarily because of his own conduct, Sarah’s decline is presented as resulting from a combination of personal mistakes, relentless tabloid scrutiny, and an institution that offered little support once she ceased to fit its preferred image. The biography details a cycle of scandal and debt that continued long after her divorce from Andrew. 

Ferguson illustrates The Monetization of Public Office through her systematic financial exploitation of her royal status to fund her extravagant lifestyle. Ventures like her Budgie the Little Helicopter books and a stream of commercial endorsements culminated in a 2010 newspaper sting in which she was filmed accepting cash in exchange for access to Prince Andrew. Lownie also highlights her poor judgment in accepting money from Jeffrey Epstein to pay off her debts, further entangling the Yorks in his toxic orbit. Though divorced, she and Andrew maintained a codependent relationship, living together for years. Sarah’s story runs parallel to Andrew’s, demonstrating how the privileges of royalty, even when held indirectly, can enable and protect damaging behavior.

Jeffrey Epstein (1953-2019) was an American financier who died in jail awaiting trial on federal child sex trafficking charges. In Entitled, he is presented as the catalyst for Prince Andrew’s public ruin. Lownie depicts their friendship as a corrupt bargain: Epstein gave Andrew access to a billionaire’s lifestyle of private jets and exclusive properties, while Andrew provided Epstein with royal legitimacy. Lownie asserts their relationship was far more extensive than the prince admitted, continuing even after Epstein’s 2008 conviction for sex crimes.

Epstein is the central figure in the book’s exploration of The Corrupting Pull of Elite Networks. He allegedly facilitated Andrew’s wish to indulge his desires without accountability through his sex trafficking network, and also financially supported Sarah Ferguson, drawing the entire House of York into his criminal network. The accusations that Andrew participated in Epstein’s sex trafficking of young women, particularly Virginia Giuffre, are what ultimately destroyed the prince’s reputation. For Lownie, Epstein represents the moral vacuum at the heart of the powerful circles Andrew was so desperate to join.

Ghislaine Maxwell is the daughter of the media tycoon, Robert Maxwell and a former British socialite. She was sentenced to 20 years in prison for her role as Jeffrey Epstein’s primary accomplice in sex trafficking teenage girls. In Entitled, Lownie establishes that Maxwell and Andrew had a close personal relationship that predated her involvement with Epstein, which explains how Andrew was drawn into their circle. She served as the crucial link between Prince Andrew and Epstein’s criminal enterprise. 

Maxwell acted as the social gatekeeper for Epstein, using her connections to give him access to the British establishment. She is depicted alongside Andrew at numerous high-society events and royal residences, illustrating how seamlessly she moved between the worlds of aristocracy and sexual exploitation. Her presence helped normalize Andrew’s friendship with Epstein, shielding it from scrutiny for years. Maxwell’s eventual conviction for sex trafficking was a critical blow to Andrew’s credibility, as it legally validated the criminal nature of the network he was a part of. She embodies the use of social status and personal trust to facilitate abuse.

Virginia Giuffre (née Roberts) was the primary accuser whose allegations of sexual abuse against Prince Andrew ultimately led to his public disgrace. As a teenage victim of Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking ring, Giuffre claimed she was forced to have sex with the prince on three occasions. Giuffre died by suicide in April 2025, and her memoir, Nobody’s Girl, was published posthumously in October 2025.

While Andrew consistently denied her claims, Lownie presents Giuffre’s testimony as credible and central to understanding the prince’s involvement in Epstein’s network. For years, her accusations were dismissed or ignored by the establishment. However, her persistence, particularly her decision to file a high-profile civil lawsuit against Andrew in the US in 2021, made it impossible for the Royal Family to continue ignoring the scandal. The lawsuit directly forced a reckoning, compelling Andrew to settle out of court for a reported multi-million-pound sum and leading the Queen to strip him of his military titles and royal patronages. In the narrative, Giuffre represents the determined, human force for accountability that finally pierced the institutional shield protecting the prince.