June 21, 2026

Prince Harry and Meghan Bringing Archie and Lilibet to Britain, Prince George's Eton Place Confirmed, Royal Ascot 2026

Show Notes
Transcript

HARRY & MEGHAN TO BRING THE KIDS TO BRITAIN, GEORGE'S ETON PLACE CONFIRMED, CHARLES'S HORSE FINISHES LAST .

The BBC reports Harry and Meghan plan to bring Archie and Lilibet to the UK next month for the first time in four years — the children's first visit since 2022, with security arrangements still unresolved. Prince George's Eton place is confirmed for September. At Royal Ascot, Zara Tindall was briefly turned away by her own security, Mike Tindall pulled off his chocolate hat trick, Kate made a triumphant return, and the King's horse finished last by fifty-nine lengths. Trooping the Colour gave us Prince Louis, a near-early balcony exit, and the Duke of Kent filming the flypast at ninety. Plus: Charles likes being called "darling."

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. Hello and welcome to Pallace Weekly.

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I am your host, Mark Francis. If you are new

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to this show, this is a shortened version of all

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these stories that happened in the past week, and if

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you'd like the extended stories, please check out Palace Intrigue Daily.

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It's been a week that began with Trooping the Color

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and ended with Royal Ascot, with quite a lot in between,

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a confirmed school choice for Prince George and horse finishing

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last by fifty nine lengths, a nineteen year old duke

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filming the fly past on his mobile phone, and the

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revelation that King Charles's mother likes being called darling. The

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monarchy as ever finds ways, let's get into it. We'll

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begin with Trooping the Color, which took place last Saturday

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and delivered everything the occasion traditionally promises, military pageantry, the

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balcony appearance Louis in a subtext running through the entire

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day that required no narration. The King and Queen led

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the carriage procession. William rode on horsebackers Colonel of the

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Welsh Guards, joined by Anne and Edward in their respective

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regimental roles. Catherine appeared in powder blue Katherine Walker, which

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royal watchers noted appeared to echo Diana's signature palette. Charlotte

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and George were described as composed and poised. Louis dress

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smartly in a jacket, and Ty was spotted tugging in

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his collar and reacting with evident fascination to the RAF

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fly past. His comments to his parents during the aerial

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display produced visible smiles and laughter. Louis has now become

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trooping's most reliable secondary attraction, and the Palace appears to

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understand perfectly well the value of that. The Duke of Kent,

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ninety years old and one of the last living connections

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to Queen Elizabeth's generation, was spotted on the balcony with

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his mobile phone out, recording the crowd below and aircraft overhead.

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When social media user wrote I have to ask, is

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the Duke of Kent playing on his phone? The appears

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to be yes. Several viewers described the moment as charming

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rather than controversial. He was also noted with some emotion,

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standing slightly apart from the main group during portions of

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the balcony appearance. At ninety each appearance carries its own

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weight One quietly significant moment came toward the end of

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the ceremony. As the fly pass concluded, Charles and Camilla

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appeared ready to head inside before the national anthem had begun.

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William appeared to intervene with a brief exchange, and the

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King and Queen turned back to face the crowd just

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in time. The optics of a monarch departing early during

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God Save the King would have been, to put it gently,

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a challenge for the communications team. Harry was not present.

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He released a video message for Invictus Game's Germany around

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the time. The royal family appeared on the balcony. Deep

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Crown with characteristic precision, noted simply that the timing was

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noted Andrew was absent. Republic staged a demonstration along the mall,

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displaying umbrellas spelling stop the Rain. Kate caught by cameras

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as the chanting reached the bal was described variously as

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giving a blair and an ice cold expression. Others called

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it simply the look of a woman who has been

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doing this for a long time and has decided she

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is not particularly interested in being provoked today. The King's

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birthday honors list also arrived this week, bringing the usual

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mixture of cultural recognition and quiet satisfaction. The founders of Ardman,

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David Sproxton and Peter Laud, the men who gave the

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world Wallace and Grummet Sun that Sheep and Chicken Run,

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were both knighted. Tony Iomi of Black Sabbath received an

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MB and callded an unbelievable honor. Children's author Julia Donaldson,

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creator of the Gruffalo, was made a dame, as was

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novelist Melory Blackman. DJ Carl Cox received an OB. Lisa

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Riley of Emmerdale, recognized with an MB, said it was

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the best fiftieth birthday present. The list, taken as a whole,

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reads like a reasonably accurate cross section of British cultural life,

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which is largely the point well palasing just a moment.

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The week continued with the Order of the Garter Ceremony

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at Windsor Castle on Monday, which Kate attended having been

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at Trooping just two days prior. In pale yellow, Patrick

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McDowell paired with a Jane Taylor hat. She held it

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down during blustery conditions so that Sophie Ceremony in vested

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three new night companions Lord Hennessy, Lord O'Donnell and Lord

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Burnett in the traditional blue velvet robes and feathered hats

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that have defined the occasion for nearly seven hundred years.

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Andrew did not attend. According to a source, he is

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used to watching his family celebrate trooping without him, but

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gar To day was described as a really tough day

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because of what it symbolizes about how much he has lost.

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He was purportedly spotted near Sandringham before the events with

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a fading bruise still visible on his face from the

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security incident of recent weeks. Royal Ascot opened on Tuesday

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and within the first day had already delivered enough material

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for a week's worth of coverage. Zara Tyndall was briefly

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stopped at the the owner's entrance by a security guard

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who did not recognize her, before a colleague intervened to

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clarify that the Olympic equestrian and daughter of Princess Anne

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was in fact authorized to proceed. Zarah accepted the instruction

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politely the matter was quickly resolved. She and Mike then

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stopped to sign autographs, which is more than most people do.

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Immediately after being turned away at their own family's racecourse.

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Mike delivered what appeared to be an annual Ascot tradition

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of his own, devising the miniature chocolate hat trick. As

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the King made his way through the royal party, Mike

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removed his top hat to reveal a tiny charbonnel at

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Walker chocolate confection tucked inside. As it tipped it forward,

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Charles appeared to burst out laughing. Photographs kept to the

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King grinning broadly. It is unclear how many years Mike

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has been doing this. It is clear the King still

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finds it funny. Peter and Harriet Phillips, married barely two weeks,

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made their Ascot debut as husband and wife, riding in

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the second carriage alongside Princess Anne and Sir Ben Elliott.

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Charles and Camilla led the first carriage. The newly Whid's

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appeared relaxed and happy. One notes the particular elegance of

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spending a honeymoon period attending trooping the Color and Royal

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Ascot in quick succession. Kate returned to Ascot for the

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first time since twenty twenty three, wearing a bright yellow

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rock sunder dress she had previously worn in Jamaica. The

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year prior, and at Wimbledon shortly after a deliberate rewaar

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that generated warm commentary. Given her well established preference for

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sustainability in her wardrobe choices, William presented the trophy for

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the Prince of Wales Stakes, a race named for his ancestor,

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King Edward. The seventh racing, as a passion, belongs rather

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more to Charles than Anne than to William, but the

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obligation was fulfilled with good grace. The King's own horse,

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Reaching High, trained by the legendary Willie Mullins and ridden

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by one of sport's finest jockeys, finished last in the

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Ascot Stakes, beaten by fifty nine lengths. The race was

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described as having held promise for much of the running,

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but the challenge suddenly evaporated. Those who follow royal racing

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will understand that this is a perfectly normal summary of

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the experience. The late Queen pursued Ascot glory throughout a

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seventy year reign and never won the derby. The horses

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maintain their own schedule. The most consequential news of the

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week was confirmed on Thursday. Prince George will attend Eton

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College from September. Kensington Palace said the decision was made

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in January, but will You and Catherine chose to wait

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before making it official. The school offers twenty eight academic subjects,

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nine languages, including Mandarin and Arabic, twenty five sports, fifty

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music ensembles, and more than three hundred society meetings annually.

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One former student described having choir practice, rugby training, band

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rehearsal and a society talk all in a single day.

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George will follow his father and uncle through the same

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institution more Palace in just a moment. The Harry and

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Meghan story this week arrived from several directions at once,

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as it now reliably does. The v reported that Harry

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and Meghan are expected to bring Archie and Lilibet to

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the UK next month for the first time in four years,

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coinciding with Invictus Games events ahead of Birmingham twenty twenty seven.

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This is significant because Harry has repeatedly said he does

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not consider it safe to bring his family to Britain

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without restored police protection, a legal challenge he lost earlier

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this year. Neither the Palace nor the Sussexteen offered details

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on how security arrangements would work. The British Government reiterated

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that such arrangements are assessed confidentially. King Charles last saw

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both children at the Platinum Jubilee in twenty twenty two.

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He has met Lilibet only once. An inside had told

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Heatwell that Harry is frustrated by the King's aids refusing

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to nail down a schedule, describing the ambiguity as driving

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him up the wall. Another source described Harry as clinging

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to hope but acknowledging a lot of red flags. The

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Palace has not responded. The Crown has not yet weighed

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in on specific logistics, though one anticipates he will. Harry

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himself had a notably human weak attended Game five of

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the NBA Finals in Texas, seated in the eighth row,

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some distance behind Timothy Chalamagan Ben Stiller, a detail that

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reportedly did not escape Megan's notice. He then attended the

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Warrior Games the following day, serving barbecue, presenting medals, and

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spending time with wounded service members and veterans. Deep Crown

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wrote that Harry looked genuinely well, which is not always

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the case. He observed that Harry at the Warrior Games,

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labeling lunch and shaking hands occasionally recalls something about himself

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that the intervening years had buried. Whether that person is

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permitted to remain deep, Crown concluded, is a question above

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his pay grade. Harry was also named to Time magazines

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inaugural list of one hundred most Influential Figures in Sports

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for his founding of the Invictus Games. Megan meanwhile, spent

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part of the week on Father's Day promotion for as Ever,

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suggesting croissants and strawberry spread as a breakfast in bed

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treat for dads. The response from certain corners of the

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Internet was, as one might predict, enthusiastic in its criticism.

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She also appeared in a social media video wearing jewelry

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valued it well over one hundred thousand dollars while introducing

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a summer wine collection. The Daily Mail reported this week

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that the brand's jam products are expected to reach their

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best before dates simultaneously around the end of next summer,

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and the shifting existing stock in time could prove challenging.

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As Ever's team did not respond to the analysis. A

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collection of Diana's letters to actor Terence Stamp emerged this

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week ahead of a Bonham's auction, revealing a warmth and

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wit that rarely surfaced publicly. In one letter from nineteen

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ninety one, she made a joke about prozac. In a postcard,

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she included a punchline about married couple's frequency of intimacy.

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The letters are being auctioned as part of a sale

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of Stamp's estate. They are a reminder that the Diana

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the public sore was always a partial portrait. And in Grimsby,

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King Charles visited local organizations and met Francine Or, who

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had been carefully briefed on royal protocol. Nerves prevailed, all right, Darling,

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she said, before immediately apologizing. Charles replied being called darling

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the monarchy it's most endearing is occasionally this simple. And

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there you have it. If you'd like to email us

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or addresses the Palace Intrigue at gmail and dot com.

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Please follow us on Spotify, Apple, and you can leave

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comments for us on Spotify and Mirk Francis. Thanks to

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John McDermott, This is Palace Weekly and Good Times

Prince Harry and Meghan Bringing Archie and Lilibet to Britain, Prince George's Eton Place Confirmed, Royal Ascot 2026

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