Aug. 8, 2026
Charles Made Camilla “Non-Negotiable” But Harry Says She Played the Long Game
A royal biographer says King Charles became determined to build his future with Camilla after realizing she was the one woman capable of sustaining him. But Prince Harry has offered a much darker interpretation, accusing his stepmother of playing “the long game” to rehabilitate her image and reach the Crown. Plus, Princess Diana’s close friend Richard Kay explains why Diana may initially have welcomed Meghan Markle and admired Harry’s move to America—but ultimately felt disappointed by how everything unfolded. We also look at Princess Anne’s refusal to slow down, Buckingham Palace’s new accessibility upgrades, and the mystery behind Princess Eugenie’s tiny royal tattoo.
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Palace Intrigue is a daily British royal family podcast covering King Charles, Meghan Markle, Prince Harry, Kate Middleton and the House of Windsor. New episodes every day. Follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen. Part of the Caloroga Shark Media network.
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Ah Calorougus Shark Media, hellong and welcome to Palace Entry.
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I am your host, Mark Francis King. Charles's relationship with
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Queen Camilla is back in the spotlight following comments from
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royal biographer Catherine Mayer, who says the King was determined
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to build a lasting future with the woman he believed
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was essential to his life. Speaking on Fox News Digital,
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Mayor said Charles reached a point after his divorce from
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Princess Diana and Dana's death where his relationship with Camilla became,
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in her words, non negotiable. May I said, I think
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the non negotiability was the point after the divorce and
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of course after Dane's death, he understood that this was
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the one woman who could really sustain him, and I
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think he felt the need for that kind of support
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and Camilla has clearly always been prepared to do that.
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Their path to marriage was anything but straightforward. Public opinion
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toward Camilla remained deeply negative for years because of her
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long running relationship with Charles during his marriage too Diana.
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According to Mayer, Charles recognized that if the relationship was
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going to survive publicly, Camilla's image would need to change.
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That effort included bringing in public relations executive Mark Bolland,
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who worked to improve Camilla's standing with the British public
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in the years leading up to the couple's two thousand
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and five wedding. Prince Harry offered a very different perspective
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in his memoir Spare, Harry claimed Camilla was playing what
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he called the long game as part of the campaign
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aimed at marriage and eventually the crown with PA's blessing,
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we presumed. Speaking later with Michael Strahan on Good Morning America,
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Harry said, I have a huge amount of compassion for her,
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you know, being the third person within my parents' marriage,
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she had a reputation or an image to rehabilitate them.
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Whatever conversations, whatever deals or trading was made right at
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the beginning, she was led to believe that would be
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the best way of doing it. I see someone who
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married into this institution and has done everything that she
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can to improve her own reputation and her own image
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for her own sake. The story of Charles and Camilla
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stretches back to the early seventies, when they first met
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through mutual friend the cheer Santa Cruz. Their relationship paused
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while Charles served in the Royal Navy, and both eventually
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married other people, Camilla to Andrew Parker Bowles and Charles
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to Diana Spencer. Diana later famously described the situation during
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her nineteen ninety five Panorama interview, saying, there were three
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people in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded.
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Nearly three decades after Princess Diana's death, one of her
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closest friends is offering his thoughts on what she might
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have made of Meghan Markel. Richard kay, the longtime journalist
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who was among the last people to speak with Diana
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before her death in nineteen ninety seven, reflected on the
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question during an appearance on the Palace Confidential program. Kay said,
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none of us really know, but I think there is
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something about Meghan that Diana would have found not just
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intriguing but slightly liberating. I think she would have liked
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Meghan's independence and the fact that she was able to
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offer Harry an escape route, if you like, from Royal duty.
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Kay All suggested Dianah would have understood Harry's decision to
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build a life in America. I think she would have
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admired Harry's decision to settle in America. She talked about
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it right at the very end of her life to
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me about settling for a time in the US. She
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loved the US. I think that if she could, she
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would have moved there and lived there. Kay said Diana
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ultimately stayed in Britain because William and Harry were still young.
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She couldn't just abandon them. They were young boys. I
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don't think she had quite worked out how she could
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live in New York or California, for example, and maintained
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that close contact that she needed to have with William
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and Harry. As they got older, they might have changed
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and I could see her living there. He also explained
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what he believed attracted Diana to America. It was this
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idea that she felt she would be freer somehow, that
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they took a more nuanced attitude towards celebrity. She based
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that assumption on the fact that there were so many
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Hollywood stars who lived their lives pretty much unhindered, and
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she thought that she would just be one among many.
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But while Kay believes Diana would have supported Harry's choice
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of Megan and understood his move to California, he thinks
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she would have been saddened by what followed. I think
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she would have been very disappointed by how things panned out,
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But I think initially she would have been very welcoming
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to Megan. That's my view. Princess Anne has long been
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regarded as one of the busiest members of the royal family,
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and according to Formont royal butler Grant Harold, he doesn't
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expect that to change any time soon. Speaking to OLBG,
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he said, I don't really see any sign of Princess
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Anne slowing down her royal duties. She is a worker holick.
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If you look over the past couple of years, she
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hasn't stopped. Instead, she seems to be stepping up for
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her brother and taking on more responsibilities while he focuses
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on other things. She has always been very detail oriented,
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like her mother, Queen Elizabeth. I truly think she will
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continue working like her mother up until a very old age.
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Princess Anne herself has previously suggested that retirement isn't really
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part of the job description. Asked whether she ever expected
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to retire from royal duties, she replied, it really isn't
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an option. It really isn't written in No, it really
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isn't an option, No, I don't think so. More Palace
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in just a moment, Buckingham Palaces years long refurbishment has
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reached another milestone, with new accessibility improvements now complete. The
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Royal family announced that the new lifts have opened inside
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Buckingham Palace is part of the reservicing program. The massive
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renovation project the beginning twenty seventeen and is expected to
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finish next year. The Palace said the work goes well
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beyond replacing aging infrastructure and includes a wide range of
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accessibility upgrades. According to the Palace, the work includes additional
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accessible lifts, a wheelchair ramp at the front entrance, a
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fifty percent increase in restroom facilities, and several new accessible restrooms,
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including a changing places facility designed for people with complex disabilities.
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The announcement to a positive response on social media, with
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many commenters welcoming the improvements as an important step toward
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making one of Britain's best known historic buildings more accessible.
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The accessibility work is part of the wider three hundred
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and sixty nine million pound refurbishment of Buckingham Palace. Once
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the project is complete, however, King Charles and Queen Camella
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still do not plan to move in full time. Princess
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Eugenie has never publicly explained the meaning of one of
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her most talked about personal choices, a tiny tattoo behind
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her left ear. The small black circle first caught public
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attention during Queen Elizabeth IIDs Platinum Jubilee celebrations in twenty
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twenty two, when Eugenie wore her hair pulled back for
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the National Service of Thanksgiving. Since then, the subtle tattoo
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has sparked years of speculation, but the princess has never
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commented on what inspired it. According to Olah, the most
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common theory is that the simple circle symbolizes continuity, wholeness,
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or the cycle of life. Others have suggested it could
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be a quiet tribute to Queen Elizabeth, perhaps inspired by
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the sovereigns orb used during coronation ceremonies, although there is
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no evidence to support that idea and Eugenie has never
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confirmed any interpretation. The tattoo has attracted attention largely because
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visible tattoos remain unusual among members of the British royal family.
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There is no formal rule prohibiting tattoos, but senior royals
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have traditionally avoided displaying body art in public, Eugenie has
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often taken a slightly different approach to royal life. She
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chose to wear a wedding dress with a low back
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so her scoliosis surgery scar would be visible, hoping to
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encourage conversations about spinal health and body confidence. Supporters have
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pointed to that decision as an example of her willingness
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to embrace a more modern public image. While tattoos are
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rare among today's working royals, they are not without precedent.
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King George the Fifth famously received tattoos of a dragon
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and a tiger during a visit to Japan when he
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was still a young prince. Across Europe's royal families, several royals,
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including Princess Severe of Sweden, King Frederick of Denmark and
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members of the Moniker royal family also have tattoos, and
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they haven't. If you'd like to email us, so addresses
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the Palacentric at gmail dot com. If you're on Spotify,
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you can leave us a comment. If you're on Apple,
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hit that button up there that says listen uninterrupted and
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get the show commercial free for five bucks a month.
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We appreciate your support. I'm Mark Francis. My thanks to
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John mcdermo at this as Palace Intrigue. Good terms,
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00:07:26.360 --> 00:07:29.759
138
00:07:29.879 --> 00:07:32.720
139
00:07:33.040 --> 00:07:36.040
140
00:07:36.079 --> 00:07:38.279
141
00:07:38.360 --> 00:07:42.720
142
00:07:42.759 --> 00:07:46.439
143
00:07:46.519 --> 00:07:50.399
144
00:07:50.480 --> 00:07:53.279
145
00:07:53.319 --> 00:07:56.480
146
00:07:56.680 --> 00:07:58.800
147
00:07:58.879 --> 00:08:01.000
148
00:08:01.079 --> 00:08:03.160
149
00:08:03.759 --> 00:08:06.399
150
00:08:06.519 --> 00:08:09.519
