Sept. 18, 2026

Prince William and Tom Cruise Team Up as Harry Faces Fresh Clash With King Charles

Show Notes
Transcript

Prince William prepares for a high-profile red carpet appearance with Tom Cruise while new reports claim King Charles wants answers about Harry's long-term plans in Britain. Plus, renewed questions over the Sussexes' royal status, Meghan's family video sparks debate, and claims Harry and Meghan are considering challenging the Palace's "private citizens" description.

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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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Hello and welcome to Palace Intrigue. I am your host,

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Mark Francis. William and Kate are heading to the red

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carpet next week for a film premiere with Tom Cruise.

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The Prince and Princess of Wales will attend the world

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premiere of Digger at London's Odeon Luxe Leicester Square on Tuesday,

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September 22. The evening will be this year's Royal Film Performance,

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raising money for the film and TV charities. Digger was

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filmed at Pinewood Studios, giving the occasion a direct connection

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to the British industry, William champions as president of BAFTA.

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Tom Cruise may command much of the attention outside, but

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the royal visit will also introduce William and Catherine to

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people supported by the charity. Its work reaches across film,

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television and cinemas, including the Cruise and other staff whose

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names rarely attract red carpet coverage. Support includes a round-the-clock helpline,

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free counselling and financial grants. alongside programs to improve mental

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health in the workplace. Tuesday also happens to be the

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day on which Harry will be in New York City

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at Bill and Hillary Clinton's Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting,

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which should make for an interesting battle for photo space

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in the tabloids. William's appearance at King Harold's funeral has

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drawn praise from the way he handled a solemn diplomatic

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occasion alongside Princess Anne. The two joined the procession accompanying

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Harold's coffin to Oslo Cathedral, where William sat beside Denmark's

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Crown Prince Christian and was photographed exchanging a smile with

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Spain's Queen Sofia. Speaking to Hello, body language commentator Judy

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James interpreted William's conduct as evidence of growing confidence in

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his role. His height and his increasingly easy elegance show

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how well he slides into a diplomatic role on the

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world stage. Diplomacy is never a given for a royal,

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and many male royals have been better known for more

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A rassable and challenging style, but William's non-verbal signals suggest

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a man able to read and anticipate situations and register empathy,

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plus an ability to synchronise with people around him rather

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than dominating in the way that many royals tend to.

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He walks with his hands clasped in front of his torso,

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and his facial expression includes a frown of concentration and

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a thoughtful, reflective, straight-ahead gaze. She also noted the interaction

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between William and Anne, particularly as they prepared to leave,

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Anne waves her hand to signal he should walk ahead

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of her, but William's diplomatic trait sees him walk in

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step with her and mirror her pose to avoid any

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obvious signs of superior pecking order. Meghan is reportedly hoping

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for a place on the guest list when the Phantom

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of the Opera celebrates its 40th anniversary in London on

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October 9th. The Daily Mail's Alison Boshoff reports that the

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invitation is among the Sussexes' hopes for as they seek

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to re-establish themselves in British society following their reported return

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from California. Boshoff suggested an invitation would send a bit

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of a message. Andrew Lloyd Webber has strong royal connections,

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having composed Make a Joyful Noise for Charles' coronation and

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subsequently been appointed to the Order of the Garter. One

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unnamed source offered Boshoff a considerably harsher assessment of the

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couple's ambitions. Look, they expect to be let back in.

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Harry expects the royal family need him. He and Meghan

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have nothing else going for them. They've burned every bridge

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in America. Meghan's recent family video has prompted an argument

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about the British weather, with some viewers questioning whether footage

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was filmed. The 34-second Instagram montage shows Harry, Meghan, Archie

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and Lilibet enjoying the countryside, with their dog Pula joining them.

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There is cycling, fishing and a fire, all set to

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Wham's Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go. It opens with

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Meghan walking beside Harry, turning towards the camera and saying,

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Come on, you. But the combination of shorts in some

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scenes and coats in others has drawn scrutiny. The Express

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reports that several social media users wondered whether the clips

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all came from the family's first weeks back in Britain.

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One asked, It's not cold enough in England for an

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open fire yet, is it not? Royal commentator Kinsey Schofield,

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and I want to thank Karen who emailed me several

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times because I've been pronouncing it Schofield for all this time, Thanks, Karen.

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And do send me emails at thepalaceintrigue at gmail.com if

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you find me mispronouncing something. But royal commentator Kinsey Schofield

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accused the Sussexes of hypocrisy, arguing that sharing family footage

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encourages the attention they have sought to control, telling Page Six,

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If privacy is genuinely the priority, the most effective strategy

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is simple. Stop broadcasting your family life to millions of strangers.

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Every hyper-curated glimpse of the children, the dogs, the countryside

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and their domestic routine invites more attention, more questions and

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more interest in where and how they are living. The

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Royalists' Tom Sykes also questioned the presentation, describing the inclusion

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of the children as jarring. He linked the video to

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Harry's earlier remarks about social media. Especially when you look

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at Harry's comments in a 2017 video which he recorded

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for the Heads Together charity in which he said, One

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of the big problems with social media was that people

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portrayed a perfect life, and then you can feel inadequate

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when you look at their fake portrayal of their perfect life.

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More Palace in just a moment. King Charles reportedly wants

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a clearer explanation of Harry's plans for life in Britain,

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with Radar Online claiming uncertainty over those plans has deepened

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mistrust between father and son. An unnamed source told the outlet,

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From the King's perspective, the difficulty is that Harry has

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made a hugely consequential decision without providing the family with

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anything approaching a full explanation of what comes next. Returning

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to Britain with Meghan and the children after building a

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completely separate life in California is not a minor change

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of circumstances. It potentially alters the entire dynamic between the

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Sussexes and the royal family, yet Charles is still being

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left to wonder what sort of future Harry actually has.

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envisages here how public that life will be and what role,

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if any, he expects the wider family to play in it.

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Of course the King wants to see Archie and Lilibet

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and would welcome the opportunity to develop a closer relationship

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with his grandchildren, now that geography is no longer such

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a formidable obstacle, but their return cannot magically wipe the

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slate clean. Six years of disagreements, public accusations and damaged

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confidence do not disappear simply because Harry has moved back

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across the Atlantic. If he genuinely wants to repair relations

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with his father, there has to be much greater openness

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about his intentions. Keeping Charles guessing about major decisions and

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leaving him feeling there were secret plans behind his son's

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move back to Britain only reinforces the very mistrust that

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needs to be overcome before any lasting reconciliation can realistically happen.

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Harry and Meghan are reportedly considering whether to challenge the

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wording of the King's letter describing them as akin to

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private citizens with commercial and charitable interests. A source described

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as close to the Sussex Hills radar, Harry and Meghan

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are not prepared simply to accept being characterized as private

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citizens when the reality of their lives is considerably more complicated.

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They are internationally recognized people who undertake public charitable work,

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have patronages, and attract substantial media attention wherever they go.

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Their concern is that the King's wording could establish a

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misleading description of their status that is then repeated by

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government departments and other official organizations, which they feel could

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be especially legally damaging in the context of their bids

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for increased security in Britain. The point they are examining

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is whether describing them in official correspondence as effectively private

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citizens accurately reflects their position as public figures. If they

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conclude that the language has consequences beyond palace protocol, they

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will consider what avenues are available to challenge or clarify it,

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whether that will be a legal fight or a public statement.

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An unnamed palace insider offered Radar a different explanation of

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the purpose. This was not about stripping anything else away

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from Harry and Meghan, it was about drawing a very

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clear line. They can undertake as much charity work as

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they wish, but they do so as private individuals. The

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palace clearly felt that reminder was necessary before the Sussexes'

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public activities gathered momentum. One source told Radar, This was

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a formal guidance being distributed to officials. not the opening

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of another negotiation with the Sussexes, and it was the

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result of Harry and Meghan continuing to pose in public

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as working royals with trips abroad and charitable visits. Another

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source put the argument this way, Harry may dislike the terminology,

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but royal diplomacy depends upon absolute clarity. Officials need to

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understand whether somebody is acting for the sovereign or acting privately.

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The King's message now leaves no room for confusion about

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which category Harry and Meghan now occupy. Harry reportedly intends

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to continue his charitable work on his own terms, with

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a source claiming he rejects any suggestion that Buckingham Palace

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should direct his and Meghan's activities. Speaking to Closer, the

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unnamed insider said, Harry is very clear the couple will

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not be controlled by the palace. The Closer source nevertheless

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suggested the couple had been told from the start that

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they could not have it both ways. Charles was described

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as very keen to make this work, but only up

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to a point, His responsibility to the crown, the insider said,

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would come first. And there you have it. If you'd

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like to email us with any other pronunciation errors, it's

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thepalaceintrigue at gmail.com. If you're on Spotify, leave us a comment.

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If you're on Apple, please hit that button up there

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that says listen uninterrupted and get the show commercial free

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for five bucks a month. We appreciate your support. I'm

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Mark Francis. My thanks to John McDermott. This is Palace Intrigue.

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Good night.

Prince William and Tom Cruise Team Up as Harry Faces Fresh Clash With King Charles

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