Paddy McNally, the Kent-born motorsport magnate and former partner of Sarah Ferguson, has died at the age of 88 following a prolonged illness.His death comes just two months after his son Sean died unexpectedly on his Scottish estate, where he had been living in a remote setting.
The former racing driver had been unwell for some time before dying peacefully, according to the Daily Mail.A friend of Mr McNally’s told the publication: “He was in a bad way for a while, so this comes as good news.”
Paddy McNally, the Kent-born motorsport magnate and former partner of Sarah Ferguson, has died at the age of 88 following a prolonged illness | PA
His cause of death has not been officially confirmed.Ms Ferguson, who remained close to Mr McNally throughout their lives, is understood to be aware of his passing but has not issued any public statement regarding what has been described as a “profound loss.”Mr McNally and Ms Ferguson first became acquainted in the early 1980s when the young Sarah was brought in to care for his two boys, Sean and Rollo, after the death of his wife Anne Downing, whom he had married in 1967.What began as a professional arrangement soon developed into a romantic relationship that lasted from 1982 to 1985. Mr McNally was 22 years her senior.
Sarah Ferguson, Beatrice and Eugenie in Verbier, Switzerland with Paddy McNally in 1997 | GETTY
It was widely believed that Ms Ferguson had hoped the couple would marry. According to the Mail’s Richard Eden, Mr McNally had proposed to her before she became involved with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.The relationship ended the same year Ms Ferguson began seeing Mr Mountbatten-Windsor, whom she went on to marry in 1986.Mr Eden claimed that her “sense of loss will be profound” and that it would be “remarkable if she did not reflect on what might have been.”Mr McNally was born in Gravesend, Kent, and educated at Stonyhurst College before forging a career in motorsport alongside Bernie Ecclestone.
Beatrice and Eugenie were photographed alongside Paddy McNally at the Cartier International Day at Guards Polo Club in 2004 | GETTY
He rose to become chief executive of the Swiss-based firm Allsports Management, which held control over advertising and hospitality rights within Formula One.The business was eventually acquired by Ecclestone in 2006 for £262.4million.His wealth afforded him an extensive property portfolio spanning multiple countries. Among his holdings were Sevenhampton Place in Wiltshire, a residence in St Tropez, and a grouse moor in the Cairngorms – the latter raided by wildlife police in 2008 over allegations of raptor persecution.
Mr McNally also owned multiple chalets in the Swiss alpine resort of Verbier, where he had maintained a presence since 1980. One of the properties reportedly earned the nickname “Cocaine Castle.”Ms Ferguson and Mr McNally maintained a lasting friendship long after their romantic involvement ended. In 1997, the former duchess brought her daughters Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie to stay at his Verbier chalet, and the young royals were later photographed alongside Mr McNally at the Cartier International Day at Guards Polo Club in 2004.