For the groups $G={\mathrm{Sp}}(p,q),\ \mathrm{SO}^\ast(2n)$, and $\mathrm{U}(m,n)$, we consider degenerate principal series whose infinitesimal character coincides with a finite-dimensional representation of $G$. We prove that each irreducible constituent of maximal Gelfand–Kirillov dimension is a derived functor module. We also show that at an appropriate ‘most singular’ parameter, each irreducible constituent is weakly unipotent and unitarizable. Conversely we show that any weakly unipotent representation associated to a real form of the corresponding Richardson orbit is unique up to isomorphism and can be embedded into a degenerate principal series at the most singular integral parameter (apart from a handful of very even cases in type D). We also discuss edge-of-wedge-type embeddings of derived functor modules into degenerate principal series.