May 15, 2026

Royal Blue Drama, Palace Dress Codes, and What the Royals Really Drive

Show Notes
Transcript

Is even the color blue part of royal hierarchy? New claims suggest Queen Camilla’s wardrobe choices may carry deeper meaning, as commentators debate whether fashion still signals status inside the palace. We break down the reporting and what Meghan once said about royal dress rules. Then, a look at what the Royal Family actually drives — from King Charles’s famous Aston Martin to William’s early Volkswagen and Harry’s surprisingly modest first cars. After the break, Daisy Goodwin reexamines the marriage of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, raising questions about power, control, and one of history’s most famous royal relationships.

Get episodes of Palace Intrigue by becommming a paid subscriber on Apple Podcasts. Click the button that says uninterrupted listening. Just $5 a month, and that includes many ofther shows on the Caloroga Shark network.

A new season of King William is available now.

Our royal newsletter written by Deep Crown is available for free.

Royal Books:

Revenge: Meghan, Harry, and the War Between the Windsors by Tom Bower

William and Catherine: The Monarchy's New Era: The Inside Story

The Royal Insider: My Life with the Queen, the King and Princess Diana

WEBVTT

1
00:00:00.240 --> 00:00:11.679
Ah Calorogus Shark Media. Hello and welcome to Pallas Intrigue.

2
00:00:11.679 --> 00:00:14.039
I am your host, Mark Francis. According to a report

3
00:00:14.039 --> 00:00:16.879
in Fox News, a fresh round of royal commentary is

4
00:00:16.920 --> 00:00:19.719
focusing on claims that even the color blue may have

5
00:00:19.760 --> 00:00:23.280
become part of Pallas hierarchy. The Peace Sentence on comments

6
00:00:23.559 --> 00:00:27.239
from royal commentator Amanda Mattera, who argued that Queen Kimilla's

7
00:00:27.239 --> 00:00:30.679
preference for royal blue may have carried significance beyond simple

8
00:00:30.719 --> 00:00:35.600
wardrobe taste. Matta told Fox News Digital protecting Kimilla's use

9
00:00:35.600 --> 00:00:38.880
of blue would have enforced a visual hierarchy for royal events.

10
00:00:39.359 --> 00:00:42.560
Let's not forget the Camilla entered Pallace life amid significant

11
00:00:42.600 --> 00:00:45.759
public skepticism, and she has spent the last two decades

12
00:00:45.799 --> 00:00:50.399
meticulously rewriting her story. Her preference for a saturated, commanding

13
00:00:50.520 --> 00:00:54.200
royal blue has been central to that project. In recent years,

14
00:00:54.600 --> 00:00:59.119
her preferred shade is literally royal blue. Matta also repeated

15
00:00:59.159 --> 00:01:02.280
a claim she had made TikTok, saying never forget Camilla

16
00:01:02.399 --> 00:01:05.680
claiming blue and telling other royals, namely Kate, they could

17
00:01:05.799 --> 00:01:09.000
not wear it. Fox notes that similar claims have appeared

18
00:01:09.000 --> 00:01:12.480
before in British Press. A source previously told The Express

19
00:01:12.760 --> 00:01:15.000
the Queen is now able to choose her outfits before

20
00:01:15.040 --> 00:01:17.439
all the other women in the royal family. It's part

21
00:01:17.439 --> 00:01:20.200
of the royal pecking order, and that includes the clothes

22
00:01:20.239 --> 00:01:23.599
and color. Her Majesty's favorite color is blue, so is Kate's.

23
00:01:23.799 --> 00:01:27.120
Sophie is also quite fond of it. Matter adds the

24
00:01:27.200 --> 00:01:29.760
Royals love their blue. It could also signal Camilla feels

25
00:01:29.799 --> 00:01:31.920
secure enough in her role as queen to seed some

26
00:01:32.120 --> 00:01:36.799
territory Sartorially speaking, there's likely no written rule about blue,

27
00:01:37.040 --> 00:01:40.120
but what there is involves a web of informal understandings

28
00:01:40.159 --> 00:01:43.519
maintained by the people closest to each principle royal. The

29
00:01:43.560 --> 00:01:46.599
only thing unusual about Mekan acting as a color gatekeeper

30
00:01:46.840 --> 00:01:50.519
is that it became public knowledge past dresses like Angela

31
00:01:50.599 --> 00:01:55.000
Kelly also ruled over visuals with an iron fist. The

32
00:01:55.159 --> 00:01:58.480
reporters that revisits remarks Megan made in Sussex's Netflix series

33
00:01:58.519 --> 00:02:01.920
about royal dressing Convention. Meghan said, most of the time

34
00:02:01.959 --> 00:02:04.079
I was in the UK, I rarely wore color. To

35
00:02:04.120 --> 00:02:06.480
my understanding, you can't ever wear the same color as

36
00:02:06.480 --> 00:02:08.759
her Majesty if there's a group events, but then you

37
00:02:08.960 --> 00:02:10.680
shouldn't be wearing the same color as one of the

38
00:02:10.680 --> 00:02:14.560
other more senior members of the family. Photographer Helena Chard

39
00:02:14.639 --> 00:02:17.879
explains that fashion hierarchy remains real even if the rules

40
00:02:17.879 --> 00:02:21.199
may have loosened. Chard said the Queen gets first DIBs

41
00:02:21.240 --> 00:02:24.919
at her outfit choice. Her preference overrides others as well.

42
00:02:24.919 --> 00:02:28.439
Documented the Queen Camilla, Princess Catherine, and indeed Sophie, Duchess

43
00:02:28.479 --> 00:02:31.280
of Edinburgh, love wearing the color blue. There was talk

44
00:02:31.319 --> 00:02:34.759
of stepping on royal toes when it comes to blue outfits. However,

45
00:02:35.159 --> 00:02:37.240
I think you'll find it was the dresses kicking up

46
00:02:37.280 --> 00:02:39.879
a royal fuss. In the royal family. Fashion is a

47
00:02:39.960 --> 00:02:44.520
carefully curated statement. No accidental color clashes are allowed, but

48
00:02:44.680 --> 00:02:48.000
occasionally we've seen a display of planned family unity with

49
00:02:48.039 --> 00:02:51.439
an outfit color. But to avoid any possible stepping on

50
00:02:51.520 --> 00:02:54.439
royal toes, the rules have relaxed around the regal color blue,

51
00:02:54.639 --> 00:02:57.719
allowing royal women to wear different shades of blue. This

52
00:02:57.800 --> 00:03:02.360
allows the message of calm stability to shine through. Hillary

53
00:03:02.360 --> 00:03:05.039
Fortage was more skeptical about the idea of an actual feud,

54
00:03:05.080 --> 00:03:09.800
telling Fox all royal households have always been intensely hierarchical thrusts.

55
00:03:09.919 --> 00:03:12.599
Code is just one of the main ways to visually

56
00:03:12.639 --> 00:03:16.759
depict such It's more procedural than personal, and quite regular.

57
00:03:17.240 --> 00:03:19.240
The only out of order issue at hand is the

58
00:03:19.280 --> 00:03:23.479
queen's consort dresser becoming so involved with some sort of enforcement.

59
00:03:23.879 --> 00:03:26.120
Princess Catherine and others have been seen so many times

60
00:03:26.120 --> 00:03:29.159
in blue it seems rather dubious acclaim. I haven't heard

61
00:03:29.199 --> 00:03:33.400
anything about any such tension. Queen Elizabeth liked it because

62
00:03:33.439 --> 00:03:35.479
it matched her eyes, though I believe it was Norman

63
00:03:35.520 --> 00:03:37.840
Hartnell who first dressed her in blue. For that reason,

64
00:03:38.520 --> 00:03:42.840
blue communicates loyalty, stability, and trustworthiness for a monarchy, positioning

65
00:03:42.879 --> 00:03:46.360
the Whales as the steady future of the institution. Its

66
00:03:46.400 --> 00:03:50.960
ideal visual shorthand that also creates cohesive imagery. Notably, we've

67
00:03:51.000 --> 00:03:53.479
seen Kate favor pastel shades of blue much more than

68
00:03:53.520 --> 00:03:56.879
a commanding royal blue, only since becoming Princess of Wales,

69
00:03:56.879 --> 00:03:59.759
as he really started to make use of more saturated tones.

70
00:04:01.159 --> 00:04:03.439
The Royal family may be best known for formal carriages

71
00:04:03.439 --> 00:04:05.719
and motorcades, but behind the scenes, their choice of cars

72
00:04:05.800 --> 00:04:09.759
is far more varied and in some cases surprisingly ordinary.

73
00:04:10.120 --> 00:04:13.080
According to former royal butler Grant Harold, members of the

74
00:04:13.080 --> 00:04:16.480
family have long enjoyed driving themselves, with many learning behind

75
00:04:16.480 --> 00:04:18.879
the wheel just like anyone else. At the top of

76
00:04:18.879 --> 00:04:21.920
the list is King Charles, whose most famous vehicle remains

77
00:04:21.920 --> 00:04:24.279
a classic Aston Martin, gifted to him for his twenty

78
00:04:24.279 --> 00:04:27.000
first birthday. The car has since become something of a symbol,

79
00:04:27.120 --> 00:04:29.040
not least because it has been converted to run on

80
00:04:29.399 --> 00:04:32.120
by a fuel made from wine and cheese. Harold said

81
00:04:32.120 --> 00:04:35.319
the King is particularly protective of it, explaining he refused

82
00:04:35.319 --> 00:04:37.319
to Prince William or Prince Ary that they can't drive

83
00:04:37.360 --> 00:04:39.360
it no matter how many times they asked, although he

84
00:04:39.360 --> 00:04:41.160
did allow William and Catherine to use it on their

85
00:04:41.199 --> 00:04:43.959
wedding day. In more recent years, the King has also

86
00:04:43.959 --> 00:04:47.600
embraced electric vehicles, including a BMW model used at the

87
00:04:47.680 --> 00:04:51.720
Royal Windsor Flower Show, reflecting his long standing environmental interests.

88
00:04:52.560 --> 00:04:55.519
Land Rovers remain as staple across the Royal household, both

89
00:04:55.519 --> 00:04:59.240
for practical use and tradition. Harold noted land Rover has

90
00:04:59.279 --> 00:05:01.759
the Royal warrant, so the family and their security teams

91
00:05:01.920 --> 00:05:04.480
have a lot of land rovers and range Rovers. The

92
00:05:04.560 --> 00:05:07.680
King himself has also been associated with a Jaguar, reportedly

93
00:05:07.680 --> 00:05:10.360
featuring the sticker reading save the Red Squirrel. A not

94
00:05:10.480 --> 00:05:14.839
to his well known environmental campaigning, Prince William's early driving

95
00:05:14.920 --> 00:05:18.639
days were notably down to earth. Harold recalled, Prince William

96
00:05:18.680 --> 00:05:20.639
obviously has his own cars now, but I remember he

97
00:05:20.720 --> 00:05:23.480
used to drive this funny little VW I say funny,

98
00:05:24.000 --> 00:05:25.639
it was a nice car. It was just odd seeing

99
00:05:25.639 --> 00:05:27.839
the future King driving around of this poky little car,

100
00:05:28.040 --> 00:05:30.399
very similar to what normal young men were driving at

101
00:05:30.399 --> 00:05:34.399
the time. He also had a Ford focus. More recently,

102
00:05:34.399 --> 00:05:37.199
William has followed his father's lead, opting for an electric Audi,

103
00:05:37.519 --> 00:05:41.120
arriving in one at the Earth Shot Prize Awards. The

104
00:05:41.160 --> 00:05:43.399
Princess of Wales has also shown a preference for Audis

105
00:05:43.399 --> 00:05:45.959
over the years, having driven both an Audi A three

106
00:05:46.000 --> 00:05:49.439
and later upgrading to A five. She has also been

107
00:05:49.519 --> 00:05:51.959
seen behind the wheel of a land Rovers Offender once

108
00:05:52.000 --> 00:05:56.399
owned by Prince Philip, particularly during engagements tied to NHS charities.

109
00:05:56.920 --> 00:05:59.639
Prince Harry's early choices may be the most surprising of all.

110
00:05:59.680 --> 00:06:02.720
According to Harold, he once drove a smart car, far

111
00:06:02.759 --> 00:06:05.040
from the image many might expect of a young prince.

112
00:06:05.399 --> 00:06:08.319
He later moved on to a Volkswagen Golf, reportedly a

113
00:06:08.319 --> 00:06:11.360
gift from his father for his seventeenth birthday, before upgrading

114
00:06:11.439 --> 00:06:14.879
to an Audi eight three more palace. In Just a Moment,

115
00:06:18.600 --> 00:06:20.959
Daisy Goodwin says her new play about Queen Victoria and

116
00:06:21.040 --> 00:06:23.560
Prince Albert is designed to challenge one of the monarchy's

117
00:06:23.560 --> 00:06:27.600
most romanticized relationships and ask whether it was in reality

118
00:06:27.639 --> 00:06:31.560
far more controlling than history tends to remember. Goodwin, who

119
00:06:31.639 --> 00:06:36.600
previously wrote ITV's Victoria, is now behind Victoria a Queen Unbound,

120
00:06:36.639 --> 00:06:38.480
and says the idea began with a line she found

121
00:06:38.480 --> 00:06:42.519
in Victoria's diaries about Albert choosing her bonnets. She said,

122
00:06:42.959 --> 00:06:44.959
I used to think that was so sweet. Now I

123
00:06:45.000 --> 00:06:47.560
think is it actually slightly creepy that he was trying

124
00:06:47.600 --> 00:06:50.439
to control every aspect of her life down to her

125
00:06:50.560 --> 00:06:54.639
head gear. Goodwin argues the play re examines the marriage

126
00:06:55.120 --> 00:06:57.000
not as a simple love story, but as a more

127
00:06:57.120 --> 00:07:01.480
uneasy power struggle. She said, Albert being a bit more

128
00:07:01.600 --> 00:07:04.600
controlling looking at some of the things we know. It's

129
00:07:04.639 --> 00:07:07.720
a different interpretation and not one that she probably would

130
00:07:07.720 --> 00:07:10.680
have admitted to. But I think coercive control is the

131
00:07:10.680 --> 00:07:12.839
way we would now put it. Albert used to make

132
00:07:12.920 --> 00:07:16.319
Victoria write lines like children did in school. I must

133
00:07:16.399 --> 00:07:20.199
learn to control my temper one hundred times. Goodwin also

134
00:07:20.279 --> 00:07:23.000
points to Victoria's repeated pregnancies as part of that dynamic,

135
00:07:23.040 --> 00:07:24.639
suggesting Albert may have seen them as a way of

136
00:07:24.920 --> 00:07:28.240
limiting her role. She said, he realized very early on

137
00:07:28.279 --> 00:07:29.720
that one way of getting her out of the way

138
00:07:29.759 --> 00:07:32.279
would be to have her continually pregnant. I think there's

139
00:07:32.279 --> 00:07:34.199
a part of him that quite liked the fact that

140
00:07:34.319 --> 00:07:37.000
Victoria was out of action every time she went into labor.

141
00:07:38.079 --> 00:07:40.040
At the same time, she does not cast Albert as

142
00:07:40.079 --> 00:07:43.360
a simple villain, instead describing the marriage as deeply complicated.

143
00:07:43.680 --> 00:07:45.680
She said one of the things he said after he

144
00:07:45.720 --> 00:07:48.319
married Victoria was I'm the husband, but I'm not the

145
00:07:48.360 --> 00:07:49.959
master in the house. And I think he spent the

146
00:07:49.959 --> 00:07:54.160
rest of their married life making himself the master and

147
00:07:54.240 --> 00:07:57.839
on Victoria herself. Goodwin said, I think Victoria wanted emotion,

148
00:07:58.000 --> 00:08:00.279
she wanted visible signs of love from Albert, and I

149
00:08:00.279 --> 00:08:02.439
think Albert was like, oh, for God's sakes, I've got

150
00:08:02.439 --> 00:08:05.279
all these things to do. She also said Victoria's lifelong

151
00:08:05.319 --> 00:08:09.279
morning after Albert's death may not have been entirely straightforward.

152
00:08:09.519 --> 00:08:12.040
Goodwin said, It's not that I'm anti Albert, but I

153
00:08:12.040 --> 00:08:15.160
do think that his relationship with Victoria was very complicated

154
00:08:15.519 --> 00:08:18.639
when he died. Although Victoria was bereft and grief stricken,

155
00:08:18.680 --> 00:08:21.920
her grief was quite performative. It became quite convenient for

156
00:08:21.959 --> 00:08:24.360
her to always be in black and to be a widow.

157
00:08:24.600 --> 00:08:27.399
It made her an object of sympathy and it allowed

158
00:08:27.399 --> 00:08:29.360
her to get out of things she didn't want to do.

159
00:08:31.160 --> 00:08:32.600
But if you like to email us our addresses the

160
00:08:32.559 --> 00:08:35.919
palaceintrigg at gmail dot com. Please follow us on Spotify, Apple,

161
00:08:35.960 --> 00:08:37.600
or the Apple of your choice. Side Mark francis My

162
00:08:37.639 --> 00:08:40.519
Thanks to John mcgermy. This is balance, intrigue and who

163
00:08:40.559 --> 00:08:41.240
good terms

Royal Blue Drama, Palace Dress Codes, and What the Royals Really Drive

Listen On

Recent Episodes