Dec. 6, 2025

‘His Last Christmas?’ What does an Insider's quote about King Charles really mean?

Show Notes
Transcript

An eyebrow-raising quote regarding King Charles. Our insider Deep Crown advises extreem caution.

Meanwhile, the Germans were in town for a full-scale Windsor extravaganza: a glittering state banquet, a Black Forest–inspired cocktail, and Princess Catherine stealing the show (again) in white-tie and a tiara. The King and Queen even capped the visit with a chaotic, charming game of giant snakes and ladders. And in a rare fashion twist, Kate and Camilla broke long-standing royal protocol by turning up in matching shades of blue. We break down the drama, the diplomacy, and why this state visit ended with declarations of “unbelievable” hospitality — and a very enthusiastic “Happy Christmas!” from President Steinmeier.

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WEBVTT

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Calorogus Shark Media. Hello and welcome to Palace Inturgy Game,

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your host, Mark Francis. A quote from a source to

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US magazine caught our attention. The article titled why the

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Royals Holiday season may carry a wistful tone amid health

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struggles and family scandals is ostensibly an overview of the

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royal holiday plans, but it's this quote from the source

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that is very interesting. The source said, Charles prioritizes duty,

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but he's also a family man who knows his time

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is precious. He wants a special last Christmas in case

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it's his last. We asked our Royal inside a deep

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Crown about this, and he immediately shot things down, writing

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us back, One must be rather careful with such maudlin speculation.

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His Majesty is seventy seven, not on his deathbed, and

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framing Christmas gatherings as potentially final occasions does neither the

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King nor the institution any favors. It smacks of the

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sort of emotional manipulation one associates with certain California based

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relatives who've made careers of personal drama. That said, there

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is truth in recognizing that Charles understands the weight of

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time differently. Now he spends seven decades waiting for the crown.

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He knows better than most how finite our moments are.

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But let's be clear, prioritizing duty and being a family

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man aren't separate pursuits for a monarch. They're the same thing.

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The family is the institution. Christmas at Sandringham isn't a

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sentimental indulgence. It's the firm at work, presenting continuity and

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stability to the nation. The king learned from his mother

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that you don't get to separate your personal desires from

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your constitutional obligations. The late Queen spent every Christmas fulfilling

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her duty, and her family gathered around that duty. If

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Charles wants his family together, it's not because he's feeling mortal.

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It's because he knows the monarchy requires that visible unity.

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One rather suspects he'd prefer certain absent members would remember

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that as well. As this very busy news cycle continues,

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we wanted to catch up on the German state visit.

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One of the highlights was King Charles hosting a grand

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state banquet at Windsor Castle, as is customary for such occasions.

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The evening featured a specially commissioned menu, presented in French

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that nodded to German flavors while showcasing British ingredients. Guests

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began with a warm tartlet of smoked trout, alongside Lanngustine's

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quail eggs and a delicate shellfish sauce. The main course

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was windsor partridge prepared in pastry, served with confe cabbage,

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crushed carrots with swede an assortment of winter vegetables, finished

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with a bridge port sauce. Dessert took the form of

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the baked Alaska, combining BlackBerry vanilla and raspberry ice creams.

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Coffee and petty fours followed. In keeping with a newer

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royal tradition, A bespoke cocktail was also created for the occasion,

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inspired by black Forest gatteaux. The wine selection included Chateau

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Lafleur Petris Pomeol nineteen ninety five, chosen to mark the

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year of the President and First Ladies wedding. The choices

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represented a notable departure from the banquet held for President

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Donald Trump in September, when the menu began with Hampshire

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watercriss panicotta with a Parmesan shortbread and quail egg salad,

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followed by organic Norfolk chicken wrapt in curquetes with a

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time and save Jeu. That evening concluded with vanilla ice

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cream bomb with Kentish raspberry sorbean lightly poached Victoria plums.

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This week's German visit formerly began when the Prince and

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Princess of Wales welcomed President Steinmeyer and Miss bunden Bender

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on their arrival at Heathrow. The party then traveled to

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Windsor in a ceremonial procession, with the King and Queen

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greeted along the route by crowds and flanked by personnel

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from the Royal Navy, Royal Marines, British Army and Royal

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Air Force. Streets were lined with both British and German flags.

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Upon arriving at the quadrangle at Windsor Castle, the German

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President inspected a guard of honour with His Majesty. The

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band performed March des yoshin Corpse by Beethoven. This has

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been the first German state visit to the United Kingdom

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in twenty seven years, and only the fifth since nineteen

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fifty eight. It also marked the third incoming state visit

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for the King this year, following those of French President

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Emmanuel Macron in July and President Donald Trump in September.

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The star of the show, as usual was Kate. For

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the white tied dinner, Princess Catherine appeared in a full

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length ball gown and tiara. Ahead of the banquet, the

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Prince and Princess of Wales shared a preview of their

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evening attire on social media, standing in front of a

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Christmas tree for a festive photograph. They wrote on Instagram,

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looking forward to a special banquet tonight in Windsor. The

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banquet marked Catherine's third state dinner of the year. In July,

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she attended the French President Emanuel Macron, wearing the lover

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was not tiara and a red gown with cape style

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detailing by Sarah Burton. For Givon, she completed with an

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evening club which embroidered with Lily of the Valley. In September,

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at the state banquet for US President Donald Trump, she

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chose a Philippa Lepley full length hand embroidered gold lace

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coat over a silk crape gown. The coat embellished with

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roses in couched gold corning French knots and sat and

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stitched broooms. On the second day of the German state visit,

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King Charles and Queen Camilla hosted the President and his

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wife at Windsor Castle for a lighter, more informal engagement,

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which culminated in an unexpected game of giant snakes and ladders.

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After spending the night at the castle, following the state banquet,

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the German President and First Lady joined the King and

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Queen to meet staff and volunteers from organizations working in

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areas of shared interest including food waste, the environment, youth initiatives,

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health and employee volunteering, and heritage. Before the event, the

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visitors had privately laid a wreath at the tomb of

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Queen Elizabeth II in Saint George's Chapel, a gesture that

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has now become customary during state visits. In the Inner Hall,

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the royal party were greeted by a pair of guide

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dog puppies and showing a Victorian sleigh originally designed by

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Prince Albert for Queen Victoria and used family outings. Representatives

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from one of the charities, Citizen Hub, then invited both

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royal couples to take part in oversized game of snakes

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and ladders, using a large foam dice and answering a

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question linked to whatever square they landed on. When the

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Queen was asked to describe a time she had helped someone,

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she reflected on her long running work on domestic abuse.

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She replied them she hoped she had helped victims through

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her campaigning, adding I hope I have several times. The

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King meanwhile, chose not to respond to a question about

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a challenge he had faced and how he might have

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handled it differently, gesturing instead towards the assembled media and

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tactfully declining to answer. One wonders what his candid answer

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might be. At one stage, with the room crowded and bustling,

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the King and Queen unexpectedly found themselves face to face

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from opposite sides of the hall and burst out laughing

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at the cheerful indoor chaos. The Victorian sleigh, its vivid

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red upholstery fully restored, proved a particular talking point. It

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had been brought into the Inner Hall for the duration

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of the visit to protect it from weather. Miss Bundenbender

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exclaimed wow on seeing it and running a hand along

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the fabric. As the party were told about its history

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and how it functioned. The sleigh was originally used by

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Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, who drove it himself across

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the South Downs, and had appeared in a drawing showing

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the couple and their children riding in the snow near Brighton.

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Over time, it has also been used at Sandringham and Windsor.

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Was restored by the Royal Mews in nineteen eighty nine,

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displayed publicly for two decades, and later placed in storage

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at the Windsor Coach House. It is not believed to

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have carried a member of the royal family since the

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Victorian era, though the late Queen Elizabeth I viewed it

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while it was on display. It is one of five

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slaves in the Royal collection. The King, Queen, President and

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First Lady posed with a reproduction of the drawing of

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Albert driving his family in the sleigh, while simultaneously studying

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the real vehicle in front of them and chatting warmly

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about the details. As the visit drew to a close,

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President Steinmeyer offered an effusive farewell, thanking the King in

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detail for the hospitality at Windsor. You were so generous

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inviting us the staying of the night. He said, we

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had a good breakfast and wonderful banquet yesterday. His wife added,

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it was really so wonderful, unbelievable. We will never forget it,

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said the President. As the Queen and Miss bunden Bender

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said their goodbyes and exchanged kisses, the first Lady told

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her it was so wonderful all the best. Camilla replied,

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hopefully see you again before too long. Really lovely to

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see you again. The Queen also told the President, I

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hope we'll meet again. As he walked towards his car.

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The President turned back to his host and called out

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Happy Christmas. More palacing just a moment, the Standard was

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fascinated by the color blue. The Queen and Princess of

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Wales appeared in coordinated blue outfits as they welcomed the

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German president, a choice that quietly breaks long standing royal

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clothing protocol. Traditionally, senior royal women avoid wearing the same

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colour at major engagements, a guideline highlighted by Megan Markele

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in her Netflix series when she said she rarely wore

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color to avoid clashing with more senior members. Despite that convention,

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both Queen Camilla and the Princess of Wales stepped out

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in blue, the Princess in bespoke Alexander, the Queen coat

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dressed with sapphire jewelry once worn by Princess Diana, and

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the Queen in an electric blue Anna Valentine coat paired

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with a Philip Treacy hat. According to reports, the rule

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around colour has been relaxed for blue, specifically, Queen Camilla's

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fondness for the shade, combined with the fact that she

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now chooses her outfit first, reportedly made it increasingly difficult

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for stylists to avoid clashes with the Princess of Wales

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and the Dutch of Edinburgh, who also favored blue. The

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new approach allows senior royal women to wear blue at

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the same event, provided each chooses a different shade. We'll

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be back in the morning with the rest of the

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top twenty five Royals stories of twenty twenty five. It's

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a busy weekend and will jump in if there is

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any more breaking news, which there seems to be once

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an hour this week. Then there you have it. I'd

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like to email us who addresses the Palace Intrigue at

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a gmail dot com. Please follow us on all your

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favorite apps and find us on Facebook and Instagram. Come

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say hi, I'm Mark Francis My thanks to John McDermott.

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This is palace intrigue in good terms.

‘His Last Christmas?’ What does an Insider's quote about King Charles really mean?

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