Archewell Shuttered, Bosses from Hell, and Charles's Regrets" - The week in Royal news with Mark Francis

0:03 Calorogus Shark Media. Hello and welcome to Palace Weekly. I am your host, Mark Francis. First off, happy New Year, and secondly, an apology. If you are a subscriber, we're having some issues with Apple podcasts at the moment and you may still be receiving commercials. We know it's frustrating for you as well as us. We're trying to resolve the situation. Apple is a little behind the game on this, but we hope the issue will be resolved soon and really really really appreciate your support behind the scenes here. So let's get on with what happened last week. There are fresh claims of tension between Megan Markam and Netflix over the limits of her role in future projects, with reports suggesting the streaming giant has firmly ruled out her ambitions to move into directing. According to celebrity reporter Rob Shooter, the Duchess of Sussex has been keen to expand her creative control beyond producing, but has met resistance from Netflix.

1:04 When industry Insider is quoted as saying she was turned down outright, with no meetings, no maybe's, no second chances. Another source explained the reasoning they are fine with Megan as a producer, but giving her the director's chair that was never going to happen. Netflix is not interested. The same report claims Megan pushed strongly for the role, with one source saying Meghan didn't float the idea, she pushed hard. A further insider alleged that once on set, Meghan attempted to take control of multiple aspects of production, saying she was trying to micromanage everything, casting choices, camera angles. It got out of hand fast that, according to the source, prompted a decisive response from Netflix that basically said Nope, absolutely not. Someone has to draw the line. Megan and Harry are once again reshaping their communications operation, with their chief communications officer, Meridith Mainz stepping away after less than a year in the role. Mains, who joined the team in January, is departing after roughly ten months. According to The Sun, Mains will not be replaced as chief communications officer.

2:11 This latest departure is said to be the eleventh publicist or communications figure to part ways with the Sussexes in the past five years. The Royalist Tom Sykes writes it will be difficult to spin this as anything other than a crap show. Senior pr figures do not quit after seven months unless something has gone badly wrong. Did Mainz jump or what she pushed? The departure has led to a war of words. A source told The Daily Mail her tenure has been an absolute disaster. If she did in fact quit, then she's getting out to save face before it gets worse. In The Daily Mail, Alison Boshoff quotes a source of saying when anything negative comes out, someone has to pay. It is a miserable and impossible job.

2:57 Megan will get disappointed by one thing and then I one out. She will never let you live it down or forget how you let her down, and neither will Harry Rob Shooter in his substact rights, they smile for the cameras, preach kindness and insist they're misunderstood. But behind closed doors, Prince Harry and Meghan Mikle are being branded the bosses from Hell by insiders who say working for the Sussexes is a nightmare few can survive. They'd ask for a strategy, then scrap it if it didn't match Meghan's instincts or Harry's mood. One ex staff are revealed carefully crafted plans were tossed aside after a bad headline or social media backlash, leaving employees scrambling to defend decisions they never supported. Nothing was ever final. One insider said.

3:41 Emails would come back at two am, changing a single adjective and then changing it back the next day. The constant rewrites, late night messages and sudden pivots reportedly left staff exhausted and paralyzed. You're praised until the moment something goes wrong, a former aid claimed, then you're quietly pushed out. Megan and Harry have confirmed another senior change behind the scenes of their charitable work, announcing that long time advisor James Holt is stepping down from his day to day role at Archwell. Holt, who has served as executive director, said, after five incredible years in Los Angeles, it's time for my family to return to London. According to page six, James Holt's longtime counterpart at Archwell, vice President SHAWNA. Knapp, is not a full time employee and has been working on a consultant basis. The outlet says that following Holt's departure, Archwall Philanthropies had effectively been reduced to just Halt and Knapp, and sources now claim the foundation has been essentially shuttered.

4:43 One industry source familiar with the Sussex's toll page six. Anyone still there is simply an enabler, enamored with what the couple once was, not who they are today from a year ago. They have decreased their staff by at least eighty to eighty five percent. Another said, every time someone leaves Harry and Meghan, they say they are staying on in some capacity, but they are never heard from again. Shauna hasn't been a full time employee in some time. This is crazy. They have lost their foundation in a matter of weeks. On the production side, Page six notes that only a handful of staff remain. However, sources say the future of the team depends heavily on whether Meghan's Netflix series With Love Meghan is renewed. One source asked, if Meghan's Netflix show isn't picked up for another season, then what happens to their staff. In the Telegraph, Hannah Furness writes of all the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's staff departures of recent years, and there have been a few This one will hit the hardest. His exit is the latest in the string of staff departures so long there is no complete public record of them. Ferness notes that while some have disappeared quietly, others have issued flowing statements. However, she writes the anonymous briefings tell a different story. Bullying allegations filed back at the Palace by a concerned press secretary, who said the Duchess seems in on always having someone in her sights have not gone away more palace, It just a moment. There are claims that the Princess Royal has been quietly exerting influence behind the scenes to prevent any reconciliation with Harry and Meghan. According to the National Examiner,

6:17 Princess Anne has been working discreetly at Windsor Castle, aligning with Prince William and Queen Camilla to block any potential return, and urging King Charles to bar the Duchess of Sussex from royal settings altogether. And insider told the publication Anne doesn't tend to interfere or get involved with family politics all that often, so when she does speak up and offer her opinion, it counts for a lot. Anne says it's madness that Charles would countenance any type of reconciliation or forgiveness, let alone allow this upstart anywhere near them. Megan Markle is said to be feeling increasingly sidelined after Prince Harry took a boy's ski trip to Aspen, a move that sources claim has deepened tensions at home. According to an insider quoted by a Star, Harry returned from the trip in high spirits, telling Meghan that the time away did him a world of good. That remark, the source says, did not land well with the Duchess of Sussex.

7:11 The insider added, Megan doesn't see the need for a grown man to take the little time he has off and spend it away from his family. While Meghan is reportedly willing to accept occasional solo trips, the problem is Harry is now saying he wants to do this far more often, pointing to his friends as proof that it is totally fine and normal. From Meghan's perspective, however, the insiders said, there is nothing fine or normal about it, adding that she worries Harry maybe venting about their marriage to his friends, which she finds deeply unsettling. As the source put it, She's not taking it lightly. She's in full panic mode. And here's a fun theory. Harry has been taking shots at President Trump and hopes that Harry gets deported and has to move back to the UK.

7:53 Royal expert Hillary Fordage tells The Globe, if Harry's home life is as unpleasant as we've seen, this may be a deluebrit attempt to get deported. It's entirely possible. An American airline pilot has launched a satirical lifestyle brand aimed squarely at Meghan Markle, using humor and pointed slogans to poke fun at the Duchess of Sussex's post royal ventures. Rachel Maxwell, a thirty six year old commercial pilot, runs a website called Montecito Minimalist, which sells candles, mugs, sweaters, toad bags and other items style to resemble the look and tone of Megan's as ever brand. The difference lines in the messaging. Maxwell's products carry slogans such as no titles, just taste burned bridges and backpedaling privacy and paparazzi and let them eat flowers. Sprinkles. One of her most popular lines features the phrase recollections may vary, the line used by Queen Elizabeth in response to claims made by Prince Arian Meghan during their twenty twenty one interview with Oprah Winfrey.

8:55 A candle bearing that slogan is described on the site as being for moments when the lighting is soft, the camera is rolling, and the truth is flexible. King Charles is said to be quietly regretting how firmly he acted against his brother Andrew. According to a report citing palace insiders as the disgraced format, Royal faces what are described as ongoing behind the scenes degradations at Royal Lodge. Daily Mail columnist Ephraim hard Castle writes them, beyond losing his titles, honors and long term home, Andrew has seen a series of lesser known privileges stripped away. He says, Andrew has lost a royal staff funded by the King, been cut off from Windsor Castle's kitchens, and was issued with an instruction to stay out of public view until he is eventually relocated. Hard Castle adds that Andrew's final plea to his brother was not to be reduced to the rank of Commoner in what is described as a gentle softening of approach. The columnist reports that King Charles is now telephoning Andrew frequently and has begun restoring some access to staff and stables. Residents near Windsor Great Park have once again voiced anger over new security measures linked to the relocation of William and Kate, claiming large areas of previously accessible land have been closed off. The royal couple are understood to have a two point three mile personal exclusion zone around their home. Locals say the restrictions extend beyond the immediate vicinity of the property, where around one hundred and fifty acres of land no longer accessible to the public.

10:29 Former head of Royal Protection at the Metropolitan Police, died Davies rejected suggestions that the decision was driven primarily by a desire for privacy, adding any suggestion that the family's need for privacy played a significant part in the decision is, in my view so wide of the markers to be laughable. This is a question of priorities, and the safety of the heir to the throne is the highest priority imaginable. A nearby home owner, Tina told the Mirror. She felt residents had been overlooked. It's clearly a selfish act, allowing a huge amount of public land to be closed, expecting other families to be evicted, and increasing public costs so they have sufficient security living in an area which didn't have police protection before. The new year brings even more powerful Prince William and Kate Middleton. They are due to become granteds of royal warrants in the spring. The move follows approvals earlier this year from King Charles and marks a significant expansion of William Kate's formal roles as the future King and Queen. As grants, they will have the power to award royal warrants to companies or individuals that have supplied goods or services to the Royal household on a regular basis for at least five of the past seven years. A royal warrant is widely seen as one of the most prestigious endorsements in Britain. Royal journalist Richard Palmer described the royal warrant as the gold standard of endorsements, adding Kate's warrant will be especially sought after. According to the Duchy of Cornwalls, Integrated Annual Report for twenty twenty five.

11:59 The estate recorded a distributable surplus of about thirty one million dollars for the twenty twenty four to twenty five financial year. This marked Prince William's second full year receiving income from the Duchy after inheriting it when his father, King Charles acceded to the throne in twenty twenty two. The surplus covers the official, charitable and private expenses of Prince William, Kate Middleton and their three children. Twenty twenty six is shaping up to be a pivotal year for the royal family. One of the biggest changes ahead concerns Prince George. He turns thirteen on July twenty second and will begin secondary school in the autumn, a major milestone for the future king. Speculation continues over whether he will attend Eton College, where his father was educated, or Marlborough College, his mother's former school. The Prince and Princess of Wales have a standing invitation to visit Australia, potentially with all three children. The family has not returned there since twenty fourteen.

12:57 The year also marks the two hundred and fifty anniversary of the US Independence, and there is speculation senior royals could attend commemorative events. A visit could also coincide with the FIFA World Cup, hosted across North America. According to sources, the focus on Prince William's eventual succession has left the king not thrilled. A source told US Weekly he doesn't feel great about it, as he's finally attained the position he has wanted for his whole life. Now that he's king, everyone is focused on who will come next. More palace in just a moment. This is the week Archwell was essentially shuttered. Staff decreased eight to eighty five percent in a year. The eleventh pr person departed in five years.

13:42 Netflix blocked Meghan from directing after she tried to micromanage everything. Anonymous sources call them bosses from hell who send two am emails changing single adjectives. James Holt is going home to London after five years in Los Angeles. Page six reports the foundation has been reduced to just and a part time consultant, with sources asking if Meghan's Netflix show isn't picked up for another season, then what happens to their staff? Meanwhile, Charles regrets how firmly he acted against Andrew and is now telephoning Andrew frequently, while William and Kate appear to become grants of royal warrants with thirty one million dollars in annual duchy income. Princess Anne is reportedly blocking any Sussex reconciliation, calling Megan an upstart, and somewhere in California, an airline pilot sells recollections may vary candles.

14:30 While Meghan panics over Harry's ski trips and Harry allegedly hopes to get deported back to the UK, The working Royals work, the Foundation shuts down, and twenty twenty six begins exactly as twenty twenty five ended, with staff departures, anonymous briefings, and the institution moving on without them. And there you have it. Pled to email us wh addresses the Palett's Intrigue at gmail dot com. Please follow us on Spotify, Apple, or the apple of your choice, and leave us a nice review from joining the show once again, our apologies if you are a subscriber and are still getting commercials. We are working with Apple to rectify the situation and hope to have your commercial free experience back soon and we really really appreciate your support. Hang in there, him My, Francis, My thanks to John McDermott. This is balance, intrigue and contains