July 30, 2026
King Charles’ Closest Aide Is Out - does this change everything for Harry?
Sir Clive Alderton prepares to leave Buckingham Palace after two decades at King Charles’ side, prompting new speculation about what his departure could mean for Harry and Meghan. Plus: Harry faces a potentially enormous legal bill, Meghan returns to the spotlight, and Princess Beatrice reflects on her parents’ divorce.
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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 Calorogus Shark Media. Hello and welcome through Palace intrigue.
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I am your host, Mark Francis so. Clive Orderton, the
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senior courtier who has been King Charles's closest advisor for
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much of the past two decades, is preparing to stamp down.
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Buckingham Palace announced that Orderton will leave his role as
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Principal Private Secretary to the King and Queen next year,
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with the transition timed to coincide with his sixtieth birthday
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in May. Although he'll be leaving his day to day responsibilities,
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Orderton says he will continue to support the King and
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Queen what he described was a less formal capacity. In
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a message to palace staff, Sir Clive said, it has
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been the greatest imaginable honor to serve the King and
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Queen in my present role through such historic times, and
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with unforgettable humor along the way. That support will continue
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in a less formal capacity for all of my life.
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Buckingham Palace thanked him for what it called his tireless
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support and wise counsel, adding to the King and Queen
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are deeply grateful for his loyalty and that his long
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lead time will allow for a smooth handover to his successor.
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The Palace says it will consider both internal and external
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candidates before naming a replacement, with the transition expected to
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continue through the spring and summer of twenty twenty seven.
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For royal watchers, this is a significant behind the scenes change.
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While most people never hear Sir Clive's name, he has
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arguably been the most influential palace official of King Charles reign.
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He first worked for Charles when he was Prince of Wales,
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eventually becoming Principal Private Secretary in twenty fifteen, and remained
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at the King's side through the death of Queen Elizabeth I,
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the accession, the coronation, and the early years of Charles reign.
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His tenure also overlapped with some of the monarchy's most
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difficult modern challenges. Those included the Duke and Duchess of
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Sussex stepping back from royal duties, the continuing fallout involving
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Prince Ane Andrew, and the King's own cancer diagnosis. While
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Pallas officials rarely discuss who makes key strategic decisions, Orderton
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has long been regarded by a royal correspondence as one
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of the central figures, helping guide the institution through those moments.
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Before joining the royal household, Orderton had a diplomatic career
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that included serving as Britain's ambassador to Morocco, giving him
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extensive experience in international affairs that proved valuable as Charles
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expanded his role on the world stage. According to Sky News,
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Alderton now hopes to spend more time with his family
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after years in what his wife has reportedly described as
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a life of a complete workaholic. The search for his
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successor will be one of the most important staffing decisions
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Buckingham Palace has made since the King's accession. Whoever takes
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over will inherit responsibility not only for managing the Monarch's
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official diary, but also for helping steer the institution through
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the next chapter of King Charles' reign. So Clive's influence
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inside the palace has also made him at ugget of
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criticism over the years. In his twenty twenty three memoir Spare,
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Prince Harry appeared to identify Auderiton with the nickname the Wasp,
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one of several insect inspired names he used for senior
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pallace staff. Harry described the wasp as charming, arrogant, a
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ball of jazzy energy, and accused him of presenting himself
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as a deferential while quietly wielding considerable influence behind the scenes.
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Harry wrote that the courtier would appear mild nanned, but
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if Crost would later deliver such a stab with his
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outsized stinger, that you'd cry in confusion. As with many
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of the personal accounts in Spare, those descriptions reflect Harry's perspective.
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Sir Clive has never publicly responded to the nickname or
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Harry's characterization. According to some, Alderton's departure is a victory
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for what one commentator described as the bring Back Harry camp.
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While the Palace has described the move as a planned retirement,
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journalist Dan Wooton has offered a very different interpretation. Speaking
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on The Megan Kelly Show, Wooten argued, do you want
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to know the real reason he's out? Because he was
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trying to stop Prince Harry and Meghan Mikel from returning
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to the British royal family. The mainstream explanation is that
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he's stepping down because he's fifty nine and will turn
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sixty next year. Rubbish. This is about protecting the British
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monarchy from two individuals and Prince Harry and Meghan Markell
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who wanted to tear it down, and Clive Orderton was
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doing his damn list to try and save King Charles
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from himself, and he is now gone. Another interpretation of
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the news comes from the Royalist. One Harry supporter was
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quoted as saying Charles is reasserting his authority and reclaiming
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the throne. Prince Harry and six other high profile claimants
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who lost their lawsuit against the publisher of The Daily
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Mail could now face a significant legal bill of the
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court orders them to pay costs beyond the limits of
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their insurance coverage. According to lawyers for Associated Newspapers, the
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publisher's legal bill has grown to more than thirty four
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million pounds. They're asking the judge to award costs somewhat's
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known as an in damnity basis, which would allow the
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company to recover a greater proportion of those expenses than
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under the standard approach. The claimants purportedly have combined insurance
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coverage of about sixteen point two million pounds. If the
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judge awards costs on the standard basis, that may be
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enough to cover much of their liability, but if costs
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are awarded on an indemnity basis, their lawyers warned the
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insurance could fall short by many millions of pounds, potentially
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leaving the claimants, including Prince Harry, personally responsible for the difference.
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More pallas in just a moment. Meghan Mirkale has made
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her first public appearance in several months, stepping out in
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Los Angeles for a special screening of the documentary Cookie Queens.
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The Dutchess of Sussex attended the event because she and
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Prince Harry served as executive producers on the film, which
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follows for girl Scouts as they compete in the annual
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cookie selling season. The documentary premiered earlier this year at
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the sun Dance Film Festival. Dressed in a simple white outfit,
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Meghan took part in question and answer session after the screening,
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where she reflected on dealing with life's challenges and shared
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a story Prince Harry has often told her. She said,
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I was thinking about something my husband told me ages ago.
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We all go through experiences. Life is full of surprises,
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but you know he was a helicopter pilot in the
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British Army for ten years and sometimes on really hard
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days he was like, my love, you know, even if
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there's a storm happening, above the storm, the sun's always shining.
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So I think if you really zoom out and think,
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my gosh, how many things have we gone through that
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felt hard and then we still get through them? Or
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how many goals do you think you're not going to
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hit and you hit them or you supersede them. So
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it's so important to maintain that perspective that no matter
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what feels insurmountable, there's always that sunshine above. The event
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marked Meghan's first public appearance since traveling to Geneva in May,
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although she has remained active on social media, recently sharing
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photos from the family's summer vacation. Meghan teased another addition
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to her as Ever lifestyle branding a short video on
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social media with a promise that something sweet is on
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the way. The video, shared on the brand's Instagram account,
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shows Megan picking berries in the garden while wearing a
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blue shirt, white shorts, and a wide brimmed straw hat.
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The caption reads, a taste of late summer is almost here.
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Something sweet is arriving soon. Princess Beatrice has been reflecting
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on her parents divorce, saying that despite the challenges and
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mother Sarah Ferguson always made sure there was a sense
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of fun, an adventure growing up. Speaking on the Lessons
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from Our Mother's podcast, Beatrice and her sister, Princess Eugenie
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talked about the influence their mother has had on their lives.
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Looking back on her childhood, Beatrice seb there was always
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an adventure to be had, and now it's so fun
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reflecting and looking back to say some of the harder times,
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through divorce and through challenging moments, there was always an adventure. There.
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You have it. If you'd like to email us addresses
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to the Palace intrig at gmail dot com. Please follow
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us on Spotify and if you're on there you can
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leave us a comment. If you're on Apple, hit that
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button up there that says listen uninterrupted and for five
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bucks a month you can get this show commercial free.
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We appreciate the support immensely. I am Mark Francis. My
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thanks to John McDermott. This is Ballast Intrigue. Good James
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