Sarah Ferguson did not attend her niece, Heidi Luedecke's, wedding amid the former duchess's prolonged retreat from the public eye.
Ms Ferguson's absence came despite the reception being hosted at Dummer Down Farm in Hampshire, the same property where she spent her childhood.
A friend told the Mail: "Sarah would have been surrounded by love, had she turned up. She could have kept a low profile without too many problems."
GB News has contacted Ms Ferguson's spokesman for comment.
Sarah Ferguson missed her niece's wedding amid her prolonged public absence
|GETTY
Ms Luedecke, who is employed at the Tate Gallery in London and is the daughter of Ms Ferguson's sister Jane Ferguson Luedecke, married art consultant Ben Collinson at All Saints church in Dummer.
When their engagement was announced in 2023, Ms Ferguson spoke warmly of the couple: "She is my golden niece whom I love so much. I'm devoted to lovely Ben and Heidi."
The ceremony coincided with Peter Phillips's marriage to Harriet Sperling, an event that drew senior royals including the King, Queen and Princess Anne.
Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie opted to attend their cousin Mr Phillips's wedding rather than Ms Luedecke's.
Jane Ferguson and Heidi Luedecke pictured in 2007
|GETTY
Ms Ferguson's public appearances have become very rare since the US Department of Justice released the Epstein Files nine months ago.
The documents contained friendly email correspondence between her and the late convicted sex offender.
The revelations contributed to her being stripped of her duchess title last year.
Ms Ferguson has consistently denied any wrongdoing.
Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice attended Peter Phillips's wedding
|GETTY
In September 2025, her spokesman issued the following statement: "The Duchess spoke of her regret about her association with Epstein many years ago, and as they have always been her first thoughts are with his victims.
"Like many people, she was taken in by his lies. As soon as she was aware of the extent of the allegations against him, she not only cut off contact but condemned him publicly, to the extent that he then threatened to sue her for defamation for associating him with paedophilia.
"She does not resile from anything she said then.
"This email was sent in the context of advice the Duchess was given to try to assuage Epstein and his threats."
Since then, Ms Ferguson has been spotted publicly on just a single occasion, photographed in April emerging from a chalet at an upmarket Austrian ski resort.
The former wife of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was seen making her way to a people carrier, wearing a white baseball cap and carrying a teal tote bag.