July 5, 2026

Harry & Meghan's UK Visit in Doubt, Kate Climbs Three Peaks After Cancer, Charles Reveals His £12.9M Tax Bill

Harry & Meghan's UK Visit in Doubt, Kate Climbs Three Peaks After Cancer, Charles Reveals His £12.9M Tax Bill

The planned visit of Harry, Meghan and the children changed by the day, with a Guardian report that the government declined a police-protection request throwing the trip into doubt; the family was later reported holidaying somewhere in Europe. Speculation continued around Althorp, Diana's burial place. Catherine, Princess of Wales, became the first royal to complete the National Three Peaks Challenge in 24 hours, sharing a personal message about "life beyond diagnosis" and raising funds for the Royal Marsden. For the first time, King Charles disclosed his tax bill — £12.9M — as the Sovereign Grant nears £100M. Plus: Charles won't live at Buckingham Palace, and Andrew holidays in Brittany.

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.

WEBVTT

1
00:00:03.200 --> 00:00:12.160
Calorogus Shark Media. He hello and welcome to Palace Weekly.

2
00:00:12.199 --> 00:00:14.720
I am your host, Mark Francis. It's been a week

3
00:00:14.720 --> 00:00:18.960
in which the Monarchy became significantly more transparent about its financewers.

4
00:00:19.359 --> 00:00:21.440
The question of whether Harry and Meghan are coming to

5
00:00:21.480 --> 00:00:25.879
Britain changed its answer approximately twice per day. Kate climbed

6
00:00:25.960 --> 00:00:28.960
three mountains in twenty four hours, and Charles visited a

7
00:00:29.199 --> 00:00:32.399
jiu jitsu academy and received a white belt. The summer

8
00:00:32.439 --> 00:00:35.719
as ever delivers. Let's get into it. We begin with money,

9
00:00:35.719 --> 00:00:38.960
because this week the Palace finally started talking about it openly.

10
00:00:39.359 --> 00:00:42.280
For the first time in modern British history. King Charles

11
00:00:42.280 --> 00:00:46.119
publicly disclosed his personal tax bill the newly released accounts,

12
00:00:46.520 --> 00:00:50.039
so he voluntarily paid twelve point nine million pounds in

13
00:00:50.039 --> 00:00:53.560
income and capital gains tax for the twenty twenty four

14
00:00:53.600 --> 00:00:58.039
to twenty five financial year. Prince William disclosed his figures simultaneously,

15
00:00:58.280 --> 00:01:01.280
seven point seven six million paler drawn from the Duchy

16
00:01:01.280 --> 00:01:05.079
of Cornwall income. The Palace described the decision as an

17
00:01:05.079 --> 00:01:08.640
effort to increase public understanding of how the monarchy operates financially.

18
00:01:09.000 --> 00:01:12.680
Charles's owned statement made clear this came at his express wish.

19
00:01:12.799 --> 00:01:15.239
The reaction was mixed, which will surprise no one. Tax

20
00:01:15.280 --> 00:01:17.959
expert Dan Needle noted on Radio four that, without knowing

21
00:01:18.000 --> 00:01:21.680
the deductions applied, the disclosed figures tell only part of

22
00:01:21.719 --> 00:01:24.840
the story. Marina Hyde and The Guardian observe that the

23
00:01:24.840 --> 00:01:27.799
monarchy is currently spending roughly twice what it did before

24
00:01:27.799 --> 00:01:30.480
the so called slimming down, and ask the obvious question,

25
00:01:30.879 --> 00:01:34.239
how does a slim down monarchy cost more than floated one.

26
00:01:34.480 --> 00:01:36.719
The sovereign grant is rising from fifty one million to

27
00:01:36.760 --> 00:01:40.319
nearly one hundred million pounds next year. Travel costs are up,

28
00:01:40.439 --> 00:01:43.640
staffing is up, hospitality is up. The most expansive overseas

29
00:01:43.640 --> 00:01:46.640
engagement was William's three day visit to Saudi Arabia at

30
00:01:46.680 --> 00:01:49.959
one hundred and thirty thousand pounds. Advance planning for child

31
00:01:50.040 --> 00:01:53.319
state visit to America cost sixty six thousand. One royal

32
00:01:53.359 --> 00:01:58.280
train journey to Lancaster cost forty eight thousand. The Palace's

33
00:01:58.359 --> 00:02:02.840
defense is consistent soign grant funds the institution, not private lives.

34
00:02:03.239 --> 00:02:05.560
Lord Folks, appearing to have been waiting a long time

35
00:02:05.560 --> 00:02:08.840
to say this, publicly described the monarchy as bloated and

36
00:02:08.840 --> 00:02:13.120
called for something considerably more modest. Whether the new transparency

37
00:02:13.159 --> 00:02:16.639
satisfies critics or simply gives them better ammunition remains to

38
00:02:16.680 --> 00:02:22.159
be seen. The other financial revelation was architectural in its implications.

39
00:02:22.280 --> 00:02:25.759
King Charles will not move into Buckingham Palace when its

40
00:02:25.800 --> 00:02:29.719
ten year, three hundred and seventy million pound refurbishment completes.

41
00:02:30.360 --> 00:02:33.560
I and Camilla will remain at Clarence House permanently. Buckingham

42
00:02:33.599 --> 00:02:39.319
Palace will continue as the operational headquarters of the monarchy, state, banquets, investitures,

43
00:02:39.520 --> 00:02:43.120
diplomatic receptions, but not as anyone's home. The palace has

44
00:02:43.120 --> 00:02:44.879
not been lived in since the Queen departed at the

45
00:02:44.919 --> 00:02:48.599
start of the COVID pandemic in twenty Deep Crown, in

46
00:02:48.639 --> 00:02:52.439
a separate observation, noted the practical consequences by the time

47
00:02:52.520 --> 00:02:56.960
George's heir inherits residential non occupation of Buckingham Palace will

48
00:02:57.000 --> 00:03:01.879
have been precedent for so long that questioning it will antiquated. Charles,

49
00:03:01.879 --> 00:03:04.159
in other words, has quietly given William the freedom to

50
00:03:04.199 --> 00:03:07.360
make the same decision without appearing to be a break

51
00:03:07.439 --> 00:03:12.560
with tradition. The tradition he broke himself more palacy just

52
00:03:12.560 --> 00:03:20.360
a moment. The story that dominated every other conversation this

53
00:03:20.439 --> 00:03:22.639
week was the question of whether Harry and Meghan are

54
00:03:22.639 --> 00:03:25.560
coming to Britain, When they are coming, whether Megan will

55
00:03:25.599 --> 00:03:27.800
be with them, whether the children will be with them,

56
00:03:27.800 --> 00:03:29.680
where they will stay, whether they will see the King,

57
00:03:29.719 --> 00:03:31.840
and whether a Netflix crew will be present for any

58
00:03:31.879 --> 00:03:35.280
of the above. The answer to all these questions changed

59
00:03:35.319 --> 00:03:38.319
repeatedly across the course of seven days, which makes summarizing

60
00:03:38.319 --> 00:03:42.039
them a particular kind of challenge. Here is what appears

61
00:03:42.080 --> 00:03:45.120
to be true as of this morning. Harry is expected

62
00:03:45.159 --> 00:03:48.840
in Britain for Invictor's Games one year countdown events in Birmingham,

63
00:03:49.080 --> 00:03:52.439
likely around the tenth of July. Reports suggested Meghan and

64
00:03:52.520 --> 00:03:55.360
the children would join him. The BBC confirmed the family

65
00:03:55.360 --> 00:03:59.039
intends to visit. The King reportedly offered accommodation on a

66
00:03:59.159 --> 00:04:02.560
royal estate. Haran Meghan reportedly did not respond to the offer.

67
00:04:03.120 --> 00:04:05.840
Then came a report in the Guardian on Thursday suggesting

68
00:04:05.879 --> 00:04:08.560
the government had declined a request connected to police protection

69
00:04:08.639 --> 00:04:12.479
outside royal residences, throwing the whole plan into doubt. A

70
00:04:12.520 --> 00:04:14.560
source close to Harry told the paper that their plans

71
00:04:14.560 --> 00:04:16.920
had been pulled out from under their feet at the

72
00:04:16.920 --> 00:04:19.439
eleventh hour, and that Harry was looking for every option

73
00:04:19.519 --> 00:04:23.000
to try and get the family here safely. By the weekend,

74
00:04:23.040 --> 00:04:25.120
the family were reported to be on a European holiday,

75
00:04:25.240 --> 00:04:28.759
with speculation pointing to Portugal, where Eugenie and Jack brooks

76
00:04:28.759 --> 00:04:32.720
Bank are based, or possibly Lake Como or Abeza. The

77
00:04:32.800 --> 00:04:36.480
Daily Mail noted all previous Sussex European destinations, no confirmation

78
00:04:36.560 --> 00:04:39.199
of location was provided none will be until they are

79
00:04:39.279 --> 00:04:44.600
somewhere else. Speculation about Allthorpe House, the Spencer estate where

80
00:04:44.639 --> 00:04:47.360
Diana is buried and which is closed to visitors on

81
00:04:47.480 --> 00:04:51.800
July tenth and eleventh, continued to generate column inches. Harry

82
00:04:51.920 --> 00:04:54.399
has described taking Meghan to the island grave during their

83
00:04:54.439 --> 00:04:57.360
relationship in his memoir, noting she knelt and prayed for

84
00:04:57.439 --> 00:05:01.120
clarity and guidance. Whether it visitors planned, whether cameras would

85
00:05:01.160 --> 00:05:04.360
be involved is unknown. Deep Crown observed that if a

86
00:05:04.399 --> 00:05:06.920
film crew arrives at all four, the reaction from William

87
00:05:07.079 --> 00:05:11.319
would make itself known one way or another. The internal

88
00:05:11.360 --> 00:05:15.040
palace daemon the internal palace dynamics around the visit continued

89
00:05:15.040 --> 00:05:18.040
to be reported with considerable confidence by people who presumably

90
00:05:18.319 --> 00:05:21.279
weren't in the rooms. Camilla is said to be opposed,

91
00:05:21.319 --> 00:05:25.000
having reportedly torpedoed plans for a cozy summer reunion. A

92
00:05:25.079 --> 00:05:27.519
source toll closer she has been warning Charles that whenever

93
00:05:27.560 --> 00:05:30.079
Harry and Meghan are given an inch, they inevitably take

94
00:05:30.120 --> 00:05:32.680
a mile. William is said to view the Sussexses as

95
00:05:32.759 --> 00:05:35.000
wolves in sheep's clothing. Kate is said to be worried

96
00:05:35.000 --> 00:05:39.000
about history repeating itself, specifically about private family moments becoming

97
00:05:39.079 --> 00:05:42.240
future content. One source described palace concerns that Harry and

98
00:05:42.240 --> 00:05:46.480
Meghan could be acting as spies during any stay. Another

99
00:05:46.480 --> 00:05:48.319
source said Harry has grown up and changed a lot

100
00:05:48.360 --> 00:05:50.319
since Megs. Both of these things were said to be

101
00:05:50.360 --> 00:05:53.720
about real people. In the same week, Tom Sykes, writing

102
00:05:53.720 --> 00:05:57.079
in The Royalists, used the word Meg's in to describe

103
00:05:57.120 --> 00:06:00.240
what he sees as a potential structural reintegration of the

104
00:06:00.240 --> 00:06:04.319
Sussex's into royal life, arguing this represents an absolutely jaw

105
00:06:04.399 --> 00:06:07.759
driving surrendered by the King. The Daily Mail's Allison Bouschof

106
00:06:07.839 --> 00:06:11.399
suggested Charles's essentially accepted an arrangement in which the Sussex's

107
00:06:11.439 --> 00:06:14.079
flogged jam in America, but it welcomed his family went

108
00:06:14.120 --> 00:06:18.240
in Britain. Whether this reading accurately reflects palace strategy, or

109
00:06:18.240 --> 00:06:21.439
whether it reflects the gap between what sources tell journalists

110
00:06:21.439 --> 00:06:24.000
and what is actually happening, is a question The Week

111
00:06:24.079 --> 00:06:28.839
did not fully answer. It rarely does. The security issue

112
00:06:28.839 --> 00:06:32.199
remains the unresolved hinge on which everything else turns. Harry

113
00:06:32.240 --> 00:06:35.439
lost his legal challenge to restore publicly funded police protection

114
00:06:35.480 --> 00:06:38.639
earlier this year. Mark Dolan quoted a former Royal security

115
00:06:38.680 --> 00:06:42.000
professional who told him the dispute his politics, not security,

116
00:06:42.279 --> 00:06:44.959
and that Harry will be safe on British soil. Regardless.

117
00:06:45.240 --> 00:06:48.000
Harry's team maintains his position is not changed. He will

118
00:06:48.040 --> 00:06:50.839
not bring his children to Britain unless he can guarantee

119
00:06:50.879 --> 00:06:55.920
their safety. The government maintains it cannot discuss individual security arrangements.

120
00:06:55.959 --> 00:06:58.199
The King maintains through sources that he would love to

121
00:06:58.199 --> 00:07:02.639
see his grandchildren. The situation continues. Megan for what It's

122
00:07:02.639 --> 00:07:05.759
worth was reported by Radar Online to have no appetite

123
00:07:05.800 --> 00:07:08.600
to walk back into an environment where she feels heavily criticized,

124
00:07:08.879 --> 00:07:11.800
and to prefer focusing on her brand. The brand this

125
00:07:11.879 --> 00:07:15.279
week launched a lavender honey, described as a floral gift

126
00:07:15.279 --> 00:07:19.079
of summer, softly floral with a delicate warmth that lingers beautifully.

127
00:07:19.439 --> 00:07:22.079
A separate report suggested she is planning to bring child's

128
00:07:22.120 --> 00:07:25.519
gifts of as ever products, a gesture one Palace insider

129
00:07:25.560 --> 00:07:29.079
described as potentially the first reconciliation gesture that comes with

130
00:07:29.120 --> 00:07:32.040
a product label. Sources close to Meghan and says that

131
00:07:32.040 --> 00:07:34.480
there is no commercial motive. A source added that she

132
00:07:34.560 --> 00:07:36.720
is not expecting the King to post about the jam

133
00:07:36.800 --> 00:07:43.120
on Instagram, which feels like an important clarification more palacing,

134
00:07:43.199 --> 00:07:49.519
just a moment now to the story that deserved and

135
00:07:49.560 --> 00:07:52.360
received considerably more attention than it sometimes gets amid the

136
00:07:52.439 --> 00:07:56.040
Sussex coverage. On Thursday, Catherine, Princess of Wales completed the

137
00:07:56.120 --> 00:08:00.040
national Three Peaks Challenge, climbing ben Nevis, Scaffold Pie and

138
00:08:00.279 --> 00:08:04.560
Snowden within twenty four hours, covering twenty three miles, more

139
00:08:04.600 --> 00:08:07.240
than ten thousand feet of elevation and four hundred and

140
00:08:07.279 --> 00:08:10.800
sixty miles of travel between the peaks. Kensington Palace described

141
00:08:10.800 --> 00:08:12.360
it as the first time a member of the royal

142
00:08:12.360 --> 00:08:14.920
family had completed the challenge. She was greeted at the

143
00:08:14.920 --> 00:08:17.360
finish by William, George, Charlotte and Lewis, as well as

144
00:08:17.399 --> 00:08:21.000
her parents and brother. In the message she shared afterward,

145
00:08:21.079 --> 00:08:23.959
Catherine wrote, cancer doesn't just affect the body. It changes

146
00:08:24.000 --> 00:08:26.480
how you think, can feel, and profoundly affects every aspect

147
00:08:26.519 --> 00:08:29.759
of life. I know this personally. She described the challenge

148
00:08:29.800 --> 00:08:33.039
as an exploration of life beyond diagnosis, and the funds

149
00:08:33.120 --> 00:08:36.799
raised will support the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity. She met

150
00:08:36.799 --> 00:08:39.840
several remarkable people along the way, including Ted Hausem, an

151
00:08:39.840 --> 00:08:42.559
eleven year old boy pushed up ben Nevis by his

152
00:08:42.639 --> 00:08:44.919
family after being left paralyzed by a spinal tumor at

153
00:08:44.960 --> 00:08:47.759
the age of three. Catherine later made a personal donation

154
00:08:47.799 --> 00:08:50.639
to his fundraising page under the name Katherine Wales and

155
00:08:50.720 --> 00:08:52.879
left a note calling him one of the real highlights

156
00:08:53.080 --> 00:08:56.440
of the journey. The Princess has now, in the space

157
00:08:56.480 --> 00:09:00.279
of a few weeks, returned to overseas, working visits at

158
00:09:00.279 --> 00:09:03.039
trooping the Color, the Order of the Garter, Royal Ascot

159
00:09:03.039 --> 00:09:06.519
and a cancer Research UK reception, climbed three mountains and

160
00:09:06.559 --> 00:09:08.399
done all of it while being described in the press

161
00:09:08.440 --> 00:09:11.320
as a woman who inspires everyone who encounters her. The

162
00:09:11.399 --> 00:09:16.559
assessment appears on the available evidence to be roughly accurate elsewhere.

163
00:09:16.679 --> 00:09:19.279
Keir Starmer resigned as Prime Minister this week, leaving Charles

164
00:09:19.320 --> 00:09:21.639
preparing to appoint his fourth and under three years of

165
00:09:21.679 --> 00:09:24.519
his reign. Andy Berman is the favorite to succeed him,

166
00:09:24.559 --> 00:09:27.200
which would provide potential common ground with the King around housing,

167
00:09:27.200 --> 00:09:30.879
communities and regeneration. William donated one thousand pounds to help

168
00:09:30.879 --> 00:09:33.240
save the Somerset Arms Pub in Wiltchair and promised to

169
00:09:33.320 --> 00:09:36.279
bull at First Plint if the campaign succeeds. He also

170
00:09:36.320 --> 00:09:39.240
agreed to guest edit Country Life in November, following Charles

171
00:09:39.240 --> 00:09:43.240
Camilan David Beckham. William's duchy of Cornwall assets are now

172
00:09:43.320 --> 00:09:47.159
valued at approximately one point two billion pounds, technically making

173
00:09:47.240 --> 00:09:50.200
him wealthier on paper than his father. He cannot sell

174
00:09:50.200 --> 00:09:53.559
the estate, but the number is the number. The Changing

175
00:09:53.559 --> 00:09:55.360
of the Guard was canceled for several days due to

176
00:09:55.399 --> 00:09:58.039
the heat wave which reached record levels across southern England.

177
00:09:58.200 --> 00:10:02.080
Buckingham Palace, which houses seven hundred and seventy five rooms

178
00:10:02.120 --> 00:10:05.080
and does not have air conditioning, manages the heat through

179
00:10:05.200 --> 00:10:08.720
stack ventilation, warm air rising through the buildings many windows

180
00:10:08.960 --> 00:10:12.480
and doors, while cool air draws in from below the

181
00:10:12.559 --> 00:10:15.559
King at one event, was photographed having perspiration wiped from

182
00:10:15.600 --> 00:10:17.120
his face while a member of the staff held a

183
00:10:17.159 --> 00:10:21.600
small portable fan nearby. Charles visited an Afghan refugee women's

184
00:10:21.600 --> 00:10:24.679
cricket team at Clarence House, receiving a decorated bat and

185
00:10:24.720 --> 00:10:27.200
asking a player who had requested a posh word for

186
00:10:27.240 --> 00:10:30.799
what would have been adequate advance warning. He also visited

187
00:10:30.799 --> 00:10:33.519
a jiu jitsu academy and was presented with a white belt.

188
00:10:34.000 --> 00:10:37.200
He appeared delighted and in Grimsby. Earlier in the month,

189
00:10:37.240 --> 00:10:40.759
he was accidentally addressed as darling by a community worker,

190
00:10:40.960 --> 00:10:45.159
who immediately apologized. He replied, I like being called darling.

191
00:10:45.639 --> 00:10:50.840
The monarchy, at its most human, is occasionally exactly like this. Andrew,

192
00:10:50.879 --> 00:10:53.399
reportedly still insisting on being addressed as sir and referred

193
00:10:53.399 --> 00:10:55.960
to as the Duke, spent part of the week holidaying

194
00:10:55.960 --> 00:10:58.960
in Brittany as the guest of a businessman, enjoying horse

195
00:10:59.039 --> 00:11:02.360
riding and meals from a private chef. He appears to

196
00:11:02.399 --> 00:11:07.480
be managing the Summer and the Abbot. If you'd like

197
00:11:07.559 --> 00:11:10.279
to email us our addresses The Palace Intrigue at gmail

198
00:11:10.399 --> 00:11:13.639
dot com, please follow us on Spotify or if you're

199
00:11:13.679 --> 00:11:15.840
on Apple, hit that button up there that says listen

200
00:11:15.960 --> 00:11:19.799
uninterrupted and become a Premium subscriber. I'm Mark Francis my

201
00:11:19.840 --> 00:11:23.440
thanks to John McDermot. This air is Palace Weekly Good

202
00:11:23.519 --> 00:11:23.879
Times