June 21, 2026

Prince William's Royal Revolution - How the Future King Plans to Change the Monarchy

Prince William's Royal Revolution - How the Future King Plans to Change the Monarchy

Royal historians, biographers and former palace insiders examine Prince William's vision for the future of the monarchy. Will he slim down the institution? How will he handle Prince Andrew, Prince Harry and other royal controversies? And what kind of king will William become? Plus, former royal butler Paul Burrell reflects on Princess Diana, King Charles, Queen Camilla and the future of the House of Windsor. We also explore King Charles's newly redesigned Venus Garden at Windsor Castle and the environmental vision behind it.Of the four, the Harry explainer title is strongest for long-term search traffic. The William title for Sunday is probably second because "future King" and "change the monarchy" are exactly the kind of broad royal questions that AI search tools and Google tend to surface repeatedly.







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 to Pallace Intrigue.

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I am your host, Mark Francis. The Iron News took

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a look at today's birthday boy, Prince William, writing, the

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heir to the throne has always exuded normalcy and approach.

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The broadcaster David Dimbleby has described as an ordinary Joe,

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yet beneath this there lies something else. In the years

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since his father became king, William has demonstrated a surprising

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ruthlessness when it comes to his role and the royal

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family and preserving the legacy of the Fern. Observers say

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he's proving to be no ordinary joe, but in fact

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a sharp eyed strategist. Author Andrew Lowney said, Charles is sentimental,

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is very compassionate. It's a bit of a ditherate, and

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I believe he'll have given guarantees to his mother and

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indeed Andrew himself guarantees that he will take care of

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Andrew and that he will ensure Andrew's girls are okay.

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William can't speak out because he's number two and he

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won't cross his father, but he'll have had a big influence.

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Charles feels his obligations to his relatives, but he also

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has various skeletons in his closet, his infidelity with Diana,

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the Black Spider Memos, proving he lobbied the government and

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has needed to keep Andrew and Fergie inside the tent,

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whereas William doesn't care about any of that. Author Robert

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Hartman tells the Eyepaper William is a pragmatist rather than

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a romantic when it's a choice between the institution's long

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term safety or his wider family. While the institution comes first,

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the late Queen, as much as she had taught Harry,

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knew her grandson couldn't do this halfway house of being

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in the royal family. William gets this entirely, that the

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institution comes first. When there's a moment where some member

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of the family jeopardizes the reputation of the brand, he's

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not going to put up with it. Hartman also talked

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about the home life of William and Kate, observing they

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didn't have staff then, but they probably do it their

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new place, Forest Lodge. But then again, it's very difficult

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to know about their staffing arrangements. Because he is suspicious

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of the press. He likes to control the story, and

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he is a very private man. I've interviewed Charles many times,

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but William is just different. He doesn't want this huge entourage.

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He's got a close knit team. Charles stays up at

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night writing letters and reading books. William's more of a

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box set guy. He likes briefings, he likes memos, bullet points.

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Charles is very spiritual, while William's not. Mad keen on church.

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The Kensington Palace aid so that William has a quiet faith.

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William goes to church. He's very dutiful, does what he

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has to do. But let's put it this way. At

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his age, Charles was going on retreats to Greek monasteries.

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As for the future, Hartman thinks when monarchs change things,

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they do things incrementally. You'll never get a huge relaunch.

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But William is the new kid on the block and

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any change he makes will be seen as significant. While

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Charles has a pretty extensive property portfolio, I think William

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is going to trim that down. He might not be

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selling off castles, but I think there'll be a general

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move toward having a smaller royal footprint. Lowney agrees sharing

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the palace moves at a glacial pace, he says, but

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I think William and Kate are looking at the European

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models of royal families. The Scandinavian Royals in particular tend

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to live more public, everyday lives and are deemed more approachable.

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This may be the way forward, as the Royals have

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taken a big hit with Andrew and the Yorks. This softly,

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softly approaches the way William and Kate will go. A

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lot of it will be performative, and all the Royals

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are still in a bubble after all. But what's clear

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is that William is already refusing to be tarnished by

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the events of the past. He won't be standing aside

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and letting private pleasure and scandal ruin the future of

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the crown. Former royal butler Paul Burrell has given a

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wide ranging interview reflecting on his ears in royal service,

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his relationship with Princess Diana, and his concerns about the

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future of the monarchy. Burrell, whose new memoir is titled

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The Royal Insider, joined at the Royal household as a

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footman at the age of eighteen and later became butler

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to the Prince and Princess of Wales. He spent a

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decade working closely with Diana, Princess of Wales, until her

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death in Paris in nineteen ninety seven. Speaking about Diana,

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Birel said, I loved her very much. I know we

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are not supposed to say that about royal princesses, but

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I think it's an exception in my circumstances. He also

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recalled the final hours after learning of her death. At

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about two a m. We heard she was injured, and

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then after the comptrol of Michael Gibbons took a call

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in his office, the princess's personal assistant, Jackie Allen, came

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into the room looking ashen and said to me, Paul,

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sit down. You have to listen to what I'm saying,

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and you have to be brave. The princess has died.

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Bureau traveled to Paris and was among those who attended

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to Diana after her death. Reflecting on that experience, he said,

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I was holding her hand, thinking she was in the

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room watching me. So it was very spiritual moment, her

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privilege to be there with her because I loved her

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very much. I defy any man having met her not

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to fall in love with her because she was incredible.

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On the current state of the Royal family, Bureau was

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particularly critical of Andrew mount Batten Windsor. Andrew has brought

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the Royal family to its knees. One single man has

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done more damage to the Royal Family than anyone, more

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damage than Cromwell. I think we could see and Andrew

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in prison. Andrew's selfishness, greediness and entitlement has left a

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very bad taste in people's mouths, and they are beginning

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to question whether the monarchy has longevity. I won't have

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anyone besmirch our dear late Queen because she was a good,

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kind Christian woman. She was the best of her best.

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Her memory should not be altered. Turning to Queen Camilla,

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Bureau remained blunt in his assessment. Camilla is not my

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queen because I have not forgotten who the real queen

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should have been. Although Camilla isn't my queen, I realize

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I have to cross the bridge with Charles and Camilla

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to get to William and Kate, because at the end

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of it, Diana's son will be king and his wife

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will be Queen. Then for me the circle will be complete.

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If Diana were alive today, Harry would never have married Megan.

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He wouldn't have been searching for love. He would have

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been happy to settle down, conform and use them those

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lessons he's learned in life from his mother, that he

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was to be William's wingman and stand by his side

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more palace in just a moment. Visitors to Windsor Castle

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this summer will be able to explore a newly redesigned

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royal garden inspired by the planet Venus and personally shaped

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by King Charles's environmental vision. The historic space formerly known

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as the East Terrace Garden, has now been renamed the

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Venus Garden, following an eighteen month transformation directed by the

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King's interest in patterns found in nature. The redesigned garden

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sits beneath Windsor Castle's famous East Front and will be

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open to the public from July sixteenth through September thirteenth

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as part of a standard Castle ticket. The layout takes

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inspiration from the orbital pattern created by Venus as it

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moves around the Sun over an eight year cycle. The

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orbit forms a geometrical floral shape, often referred to as

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the rose of Venus or the pentagram of Venus. That

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pattern now forms the basis for the garden's winding pathways,

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planting beds, heads and hedgelined design Adam Scott, the Gardens

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and Nursery manager at Windsor Castle, said this has been

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a significant project to reshape this historic garden for the future,

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reflecting His Majesty's vision to create a space that will

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offer beauty interest in biodiversity throughout the seasons of the

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generations to come. After around eighteen months of careful transformation,

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we are delighted to open the Venus Garden to visitors

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this summer, marking the start of an important new chapter

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in the garden's two hundred year history. The site itself

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has a long royal history. It became a formal garden

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during the reign of King George the Fourth in the

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eighteen twenties. Before that, the area had reportedly served as

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a bowling green during the reign of Charles Second. Prince

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Albert later took a keen interest in the planting, while

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Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret used the space as an

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allotment during the Second World War. In more recent decades,

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Prince Philip simplified the layout into formal rose beds centered

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around a fountain. Now, under King Charles's direction, the garden

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has been transformed into a more intricate and environmentally focused space.

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The redesign includes mixed perennial beds, roses, evergreen pathways and

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more than eleven thousand spring bulbs designed to provide color

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and structure throughout the year. Wildflower meadows and newly planted

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trees have also been introduced to encourage biodiversity and attract

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wildlife and pollinating insects, reflecting charles Long standing interest in

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sustainability and conservation. Visitors will also see bronze sculptures from

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the Royal Collection, marble and stone, garden ornaments, clipped uterpiarian,

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new planted avenues, pear trees. One of the major attractions

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will be the rare opportunity to view windsor castles east

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front from angles not normally included on the standard visitor route.

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The garden has occasionally been accessible to the public throughout

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its history. The Royal Collection Trust confirmed that access to

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the Venus Garden will be included with a standard ticket.

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The Trust's one pound ticket scheme will also allow people

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receiving Universal Credit and certain other benefits to visit the

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castle and gardens with up to five members of their household,

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and there you have it. Don't forget all This month

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your thoughts on today's episode. You can leave comments on

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Spotify and Mike Francis My thanks to John McDermott. This

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is Palace Intrigue. Good Times