April 26, 2026

King Charles’ Trump Visit Faces Protest Fears

Show Notes
Transcript

King Charles and Queen Camilla prepare for a politically delicate state visit to Washington, as royal watchers look back at more than a century of royal diplomacy in America. Plus, concerns over possible protests, online speculation about the King’s appearance, Prince Louis turns eight, Sarah Ferguson’s possible television deal, and Andrew’s “internal exile” at Sandringham.

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Calorougus shark media that hello and welcome through palace intrigue,

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I am your host, Mark Francis, As King Charles and

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Queen cam Miller prepare for the state visit to Washington.

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The trip is already proving more controversial than many of

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the royal visits that came before it. Royal visits to

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the White House stretched back more than a century, often

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serving as moments of what has been described as soft

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diplomacy between the two nations. The first British royalty visit

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was Edward, Prince of Wales later King Edward the Seventh,

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who traveled to the United States in eighteen sixty and

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was greeted with enormous public enthusiasm. Subsequent visits arranged from

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the serious to the deeply personal. In nineteen thirty nine,

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King George the Sixth and Queen Elizabeth the future Queen

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Mother traveled to Washington in a bed to strengthen ties

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ahead of the Second World War, with First Lady Eleanor

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Roosevelt writing she had the most gracie manner and bowed

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right and left with interest. Queen Elizabeth I would go

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on to define the modern era of these visits on

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her early trip to the United States, President Harry Truman

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was said to be captivated, describing her as a fairy princess.

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There were later moments as well. During a Visabeth President

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Lyndon Johnson, he told Princess Margaret, you have claimed our

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heart and we are very proud to give it to you,

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adding you have done your duty while in America. You

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have represented well the people that serve you, with dignity

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and grace and spirit and joy, and of course some

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visits became part of popular culture. Princess Diana's appearance at

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the White House in nineteen eighty five, including her famous

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dance with John Travolta, remains one of the most iconic

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royal moments in modern American history. As Travoltera later recalled,

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you could feel the awe in the moment from the

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people in the audience. Even mishaps have become part of

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the tradition. During a nineteen ninety one address, Queen Elizabeth

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joked about her height after microphones obscured her from view, saying,

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I do hope you can see me today from where

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you are in the Guardian. Stephen Bates observes Elizabeth the

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Second had an altogether smoother job during her six visits

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to the US, being generally welcomed obsequiously by the fourteen

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presidents she met, from Truman to Trump. Lyndon B. Johnson

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was the only person who served during her reign whom

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she did not meet. The days when American politicians reacted

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suspiciously to British monarchs peted out in the mid nineteenth century,

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with only occasional exceptions, such as Big Bill Thompson, the

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notoriously corrupt mayor of Chicago in the days of Prohibition,

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and Al Capone, who announced he would punch King George

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the Fifth in the snoot if he ever ventured into

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the Windy City. He presumably knew that the King, who

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did not like Americans much, was unlikely ever to visit,

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and never did, but Thompson believed it would play well

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with his Irish and German voters, and they duly re

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elected him three times. Otherwise, royal visitors have usually been

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popular there ever, since a nineteen year old Bertie Queen

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victorious eldest son and future Edward the Seventh ventured on

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a four month two or two North America in eighteen

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sixty to be greeted by cheering crowns in New York.

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An audience even stood to sing God Save the Queen

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when he attended an opera in Philadelphia. Sadly, the death

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of his father and the outbreak of the U s

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Civil War ended such jaunts. In nineteen thirty nine, the

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visit of George the sixth and his wife Elizabeth the

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future Queen Mother, three months before the start of the

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Second World War, was credited with greatly improving Anglo American relations.

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He was the first reigning monarch to visit the US,

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and went at the personal invitation of President Franklin Roosevelt,

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who shades of this month's visit did not approve of

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the Chamberlain's government appeasement policy. As Elliot, the President's son,

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put it, father wanted the welcome to act as a

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symbol of American affinity for a country whose present political

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leadership he did not trust. For once, it was a

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visit that came at the behest of the American government

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rather than the British. The trip was a triumph. King

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and Queen were seen as un stuffy and approachable. We

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ate things which I think are called hot dogs, she

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wrote to their thirteen year old daughter and helped Diminish

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American hostility after the abdication crisis, when Edward the Eighth

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gave up the throne to marry an American and the

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earlier Irish independence struggle. We liked them, and we hope

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they like us, wrote the New York World Telegram. It

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didn't speed American military involvement in the war, however. Alissa Anderson,

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who previously served as Press secretary to Queen Elizabeth, tells

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The Mirror there are already clear signs the visit could

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become politically and publicly complicated, particularly given the current attention

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around Prince Andrew, Arian Meghan, and wide attentions involving the monarchy.

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Speaking on The Royals Podcast, she said, well, obviously, as

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you've rightly said, the concerns are going to be protests,

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potentially by Epstein survivors. There. Of course, it's the Prince

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Harry and the Duchess of Sussex dialogue surrounding them. So

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we've already seen the King and Queen and other members

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of the royal family hackled while carrying out official engagements

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in the UK. I haven't got a crystal ball, but

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I can almost predict there will be protests while they're here. This,

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of course, is going to take the shine off the

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work they want to do and all that soft power,

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all that trying to build back that special relationship between

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the US and UK. What they don't want is a distraction,

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so that's all going to come into play. Following the

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release of a video message marking the life of Queen Elizabeth,

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some royal watchers focused less on the words and more

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on the king's appearance. One social media user wrote, this

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is such a lovely message. Unfortunately the King does not

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look well, imho, reflecting a broader trend of public figures

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appearance as being closely analyzed, particularly when there is already

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awareness of underlying health issues. Another added, Charles looks terrible.

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Sorry he does, and he looks unsteady and he had

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a hard time reading the script. There has been no

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official updates suggesting any change in the King's condition, and

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the Palace has not commented on the online speculation. A

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new video of Prince Louis has been released to his

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eighth birthday, offering a glimpse of the young royal enjoying

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a family holiday on the Cornish coast. The footage shows

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the youngest child of William and Kate playing on the

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beach in a wetsuit, jumping into the water, digging in

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the sand, playing cricket, and running along the shoreline. The

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video was filmed earlier this month by photographer Matt Porteus

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and shared online with a message from the Prince and

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Princess of Wales thank you for all the birthday wishes

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for Prince Louis eight is great. Alongside the video, a

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new photograph from the same holiday was also released, showing

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Louis smiling aboard a boat with the sea behind him.

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The image was shared on the couple's official social media

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accounts with the message Happy Birthday Louis eight today. Born

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on April twenty third, twenty eighteen, at Saint Mary's Hospital

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in London. Prince Louis is currently fourth in line to

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the throne. More palasing just a moment. Television producers are

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reportedly exploring a potential deal to tell the life story

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of Sarah Ferguson, amid suggestions that the former royal could

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be opened to the write offer. According to the report,

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interest has come from US networks, with one possible bed

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said to be valued at around one point three million

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dollars discussions are understood to include various aspects of her life,

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including her past associations and public controversies. A source quoted

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in the report said Sarah knows she needs the money

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and she's open to the right television opportunity, but she's

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also very aware of the tight rope she's walking. Her

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daughters are part of the royal family and anything she

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does reflects on them. Sarah is reported to be staying

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at a ski resort in Austria. A source told The

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Sun she has no immediate plans to leave, even though

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her location has finally been revealed. The resort has got

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everything you'd want for a lengthy stay. A relative, Martin Barantes, said,

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I have spoken to her and can tell you that

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she just wants to protect her children and her grandchildren.

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Sarah is going through a difficult moment and I am

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sure she regrets that now. Andrew's new life in Norfolk

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is being described in increasingly stark terms as commentators assess

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the contrast between these four royal existence and his current circumstances.

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According to reports, the former Duke of York has now

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settled Marsh Farm on Sandringham Estate after leaving royal lodge,

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where he had lived for around two decades. Royal author

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Ian Lloyd offered a particularly pointed description of Andrew's new situation, saying,

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in my opinion, my farm is the most luxurious, open

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present in the country because he is more or less

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confined there. He's sort of, in a sense in internal exile.

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He doesn't seem to be able to go out very often,

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and he's living a much duller life. There are stories

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about him just staying at home watching TV, playing video games.

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He almost couldn't have a bigger contrast of before and after.

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Daily Mail Diary editor Richard Eden offered a blunt assessment

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of Andrew's current situation, saying at the moment it's the

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worst of all welds. He's moping around using the King's money.

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But they're encouraging people to visit Sandringham this summer, so

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keep an eye out for Andrew. You might see him

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in the background somewhere. Even also questioned the decision to

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financially support him atting that Andrew should instead seek employment,

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saying there's loads of jobs available in this country within

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the Royal family that are said to be mixed feelings.

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Royal editor Rebecca English suggested that while there is still

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a sense of familial concern, patience may be wearing thin,

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saying he's their brother at the end of the day.

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And I think there is concern among some family members

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for him as someone who is their brother and will

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always be their blood brother. But I think it's fair

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to say sympathy has run out. And there you have it.

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If you'd like to email us addresses the Palace Intrigue

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at gmail dot com. Please follow us on Spotify, Apple

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or the app you're currently using. I Mark Francis my

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King Charles’ Trump Visit Faces Protest Fears

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