Prince Harry’s Wild Skydive as Meghan Waits; New Sussex Palace War Brewing?

0:03 Hello and welcome to Palace Intrigue. I am your host, Mark Francis. Prince Harry kept a promise to a 102-year-old veteran by jumping out of a plane near Toronto and called Meghan as soon as he was safely back on the ground. The charity Skydive supported Sunnybrook and the True Patriot Love Foundation. Harry had agreed to take part after meeting Second World War veteran Ed Marshall last year and learning that Marshall had celebrated his 100th birthday with a jump. Marshall hoped to join him this time, but a medical assessment ruled that out. He still went up in the aircraft to watch Harry fulfill his promise. I'm not in the business of letting people down, but you cannot let a 102-year-old veteran down, Harry told Canadian broadcaster CTV. He said Marshall was devastated that he couldn't jump. adding that it was great to have him in the back. There was also a joke about whether the veteran might decide to join them anyway. They did put a parachute on him.

1:10 We did think that he was probably going to jump by himself. We're glad he didn't. He's still here and he's going to be 103 in two months' time. Harry kissed the ground after landing, then rang Megan. He said he had not needed to convince her about the jump, but that she was very relieved once we were down. It took a while to get up, so I think she was like, are they down yet? Are they down yet? Speaking to Canadian broadcaster CTV after the charity skydive, giving a positive account of the family's first weeks back in the UK, he says Archie and Lilibet are happy at school and that returning to Britain has allowed him to concentrate on next summer's Invictus Games in Birmingham. It's been great.

1:51 It's been great to be back on British soil. The kids are happy in school and it gives me a chance to be able to really focus on the Invictus Games. in Birmingham in July next year. Asked what prompted the move, he said there were lots of reasons, but did not explain further. In The Royalist, Tom Sykes suggests Meghan Markle traded her privacy pleas for a hearty pub lunch. He writes, Meghan Markle and her friend Kelly Zavegin had lunch earlier this week at a low-key English pub a stone's throw from Soho Farmhouse. The pub is extremely well-known locally and immediately identifiable. It is also Meghan's second pub lunch to hit the media this week, after she was photographed near Burford with Ellen DeGeneres. It's extraordinary, after all the fuss the Sussexes have made about security, that they continue to advertise their locations. Harry spent years fighting for taxpayer-funded police protection, yet here is Meghan in one of the country's most recognisable pubs with the pictures on Instagram the same day.

2:53 Meghan has brought a souvenir from Prince Harry's 40th birthday celebrations back out for an afternoon with friends. And we know this because of Kelly Zavichan. People shared that Meghan wore a baseball cap embroidered with PH40 in a photograph shared by Kelly. Meghan had the caps made for Harry and his friends to mark his milestone birthday in September 2024. In the new picture, Meghan is sitting outside with Zavichan and longtime friend Marcus Andersen, with wine and a game of mahjong on the table. The photograph was part of a collection Zeefton posted following a visit to the Sussexes in England. Other pictures from the visit showed Megan holding Zeefton's infant son, Jack, during a pub meal, and Harry on the floor playing with him. The birthday cap has appeared on camera before. Megan included it in a packing demonstration during the second season of her Netflix series, With Love, Megan, as she prepared for a weekend in LA with her friend Heather Dvorak. After explaining that she packed monochromatic clothes to make outfits easier to combine, along with family photographs to put beside her bed, Megan reached for the hat.

4:03 Now we get into the things that bring me joy, she said. I always have a baseball cap. I made these for my husband's. 40th birthday for him and his friends. Harry was mocked for walking down the street unrecognized. A video of Harry walking along Madison Avenue got social media talking. The footage was filmed in New York last week. Harry was accompanied by several people, including a man Radar Online identified as a bodyguard. Outside the Wolf and Shepherd store, a jogger passed the group, followed by two men walking in the opposite direction. None appeared to stop or acknowledge Harry. Some social media users seized on the clip to question his request for police protection in Britain. Not a candidate for taxpayer-funded VIP security, one wrote. Another commented, looks like private citizen Harry can manage to safely walk right past the common people on the streets of New York, so it seems he has no security concerns or issues after all.

5:00 One commenter called the guard an overzealous nightclub bouncer. More Palace in just a moment. Amazon is reportedly in discussions over a major sponsorship deal for the Birmingham Invictus Games, although organizers say the event already has the funding it needs. A source claims the deal would be a shot in the arm for Invictus and Harry. The Invictus committee are really hoping it gets over the line. Amazon wanted to get involved. The coverage suggests organizers need around £ 20 million to cover costs and portrays the potential agreement as an answer to a funding shortfall. An Invictus spokesperson gave a Different account. In Victor's Games Birmingham, 2027 has the funding required to deliver the games. We are supported through a combination of UK government, underwriting, commercial partnerships, charitable support and in-kind contributions and will continue to secure additional income as we move towards the games. Amazon's involvement would also raise questions about television coverage. The company owns Prime Video, while Harry and Meghan have a first-look arrangement with Netflix. The Sun's source said, The games are a big undertaking and expensive, and it's interesting Amazon is Netflix's big rival. It maybe shows Harry and Meg moving in a different direction with a new partner. Kris Jenner reportedly helped bring Amazon into the fold. The Naughty But Nice Substack reports that Jenner used her connections with Megan and with Jeff Bezos' wife

6:30 Lauren Sanchez to help introduce the two's signs. An unnamed source told Rob Shooter, Chris didn't just know both sides, she had their trust. Megan needed help. Chris had Lauren's ear, and Lauren had Jeff's. One conversation led to another, and suddenly Amazon was at the table. Another source described as a Hollywood insider credited Jenna's ability to connect people with potential business partners. This is classic Chris-Jenna. She knows who needs what, and exactly who can deliver it. Megan needs a powerful new partner, and Chris knew precisely which door to knock on. Shala Fogarty believes Harry and Meghan will face more disputes with the palace if their private engagements continue to resemble official royal visits. Writing for LBC, she says, Look at their recent visit to Australia. It was a success, but it looked like a royal tour. It walked like a royal tour. It was a royal tour. And I suspect that's part of what the King's letter was trying to address. I think Harry and Meghan will find more and more examples of this. I think it's going to get ugly. Because They insist on living a life that looks almost exactly like that of working members of the royal family, while also insisting they aren't. Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams tells the Express, Harry's royal standing may very well be affected by his and Meghan's decision to come back to Britain, blindsiding the king and the royal family. Already there has been trouble, the surprise the Sussexes have expressed over the letter sent out by the palace about their status and their preference to be public figures rather than

8:02 private citizens. These are harbingers of trouble to come. The problem is the royals have to stick to the script. The Sussexes can conduct guerrilla warfare, overshadowing royal events in the coming months. And there you have it. If you'd like to email us, our address is thepalaceintrigue at gmail.com. If you're on Spotify, leave us a comment. If you're on Apple, hit that button up there that says listen uninterrupted. Get the show for five bucks a month commercial free. We appreciate your support. I'm Mark Francis. My thanks to John McDermott. This is Palace Intrigue and Good times.