June 13, 2026

Trooping the Colour 2026: Balcony Lineup, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, Prince Louis and King Charles

Show Notes
Transcript

Trooping the Colour returns as King Charles celebrates his official birthday with one of the biggest royal events of the year. We break down the full schedule, the Buckingham Palace balcony lineup, which royals are expected to appear, and why Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis will once again be among the most closely watched members of the Royal Family. Plus, who won’t be on the balcony, why the balcony matters more than ever to King Charles’s vision of a slimmed-down monarchy, the surprising truth about what royals can actually see from Buckingham Palace, and an update on the funeral of Lady Pamela Hicks.

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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Calorogus Shark Media. Hello and welcome to Palace Intrigue. I'm

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your host, Mark Francis trooping. The color is today and

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as always there will be one of the biggest days

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in the Royal calendar, bringing together the King, Queen, senior

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members of the Royal family, more than a thousand soldiers,

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hundreds of musicians, and of course the famous Buckingham Palace

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balcony appearance. Although the event celebrates King Charles official birthday,

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it is worth remembering that his actual birthday falls on

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November fourteenth. The tradition of an official summer birthday dates

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back to King George the Second, who was unhappy with

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the British weather in November and moved the public celebration

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to a warmer time of year. The custom has continued

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ever since. The day begins well before the King arrives

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at ten am. Troops and military bands begin assembling at

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horse Guards Parade in Whitehall. Spectators along the mall already

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in position as the ceremonial build up gets under way.

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At approximately ten forty five am, the royal procession departs

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Buckingham Palace and Charles and senior members of the Royal

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family travel along the mall toward horse Guard's Parade. This

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is traditionally one of the best opportunities for crowds to

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see the royals up close before the formal military ceremony begins.

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At eleven am, the King arrives at horse Guard's Parade

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and receives the Royal Salute. At the same time, the

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King's Royal Horse Artillery fires a forty one gun salute

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in the nearby green Park. The main ceremony then begins.

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From approximately eleven oh five until noon, the military pageantry unfolds.

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This includes the King's inspection of the troops, performances by

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the massed bands, the formal trooping of the colour itself,

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and the marching past of the foot guards. The colour

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being trooped this year belongs to one of the Household

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Division regiments and represents a tradition dating back centuries when

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regimental flags were carried through the ranks so soldiers could

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recordanize them on the battlefield. In total, roughly three hundred

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and fifty soldiers take part, joined by around three hundred

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military musicians and hundreds of additional personnel supporting the ceremony.

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At approximately twelve twenty, the King and members of the

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Royal family begin the return procession to Buckingham Palace. As

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the procession makes its way back along the mall, attention

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begins to shift toward the palace balcony, where royal watchers

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gather for the most anticipated moment of the day. At

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approximately twelve fifty five BM, members of the Royal family

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appear on the Buckingham Palace balcony. King Charles and Queen

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Camilla are expected to be joined by the Prince and

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Princess of Wales and their children, along with other working

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members of the family. The event concludes at approximately one

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o'clock with a Royal Air Force fly past. The red

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arrows are expected to form the centerpiece of the display,

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weather permitting, as aircraft pass over Buckingham Palace while the

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Royal family watches from the balcony. One of the most

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closely watched parts of trooping, the color is not the

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military parade itself, it's their final few minutes when the

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Royal family gather on the balcony. In recent years, that

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balcony has become a visual representation of King Charles's vision

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for the monarchy. Gone of the days when dozens of

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royal relatives were crowd together for photographs. Since becoming King,

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Charles has favored a much smaller group made up of

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primarily working members of the royal family. If the lineup

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follows the pattern established over the past several years, the

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central figures will be King Charles and Queen Camilla. Joining

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them will be Prince and Princess of Wales, along with

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Prince George, Prince Charlotte Prince Louis. The Wales family has

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become the focal point of the monarchy's future and for

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many spectators seeing the three young royals as one of

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the highlights of the day. Prince George, now approaching his

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teenage years, continues to move gradually toward a more public role.

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Princess Charlotte remains a favorite among royal watches, while Prince

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Louis has developed a reputation for stealing headlines with his

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expressions and reactions during balcony appearances. Also expected are the

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Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh. Prince Edward and Sophie have

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become increasingly important members of the world looking royal team,

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taking on a growing number of engagements. As Charles continues

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his effort to streamline the institution Princess Anne is expected

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to appear alongside her husband, Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Lawrence.

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Anne remains one of the busiest members of the family

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and is often regarded as the monarchy's most dependable working royal.

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The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester are also likely to

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be present. While they receive far less media attention than

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younger royals, they continue to perform a significant number of

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official duties each year. The Duke of Kent, who turns

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ninety one later this year, is also expected if health

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and scheduling permit. As one of the last remaining working

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royals from Queen Elizabeth's generation, his appearances have become increasingly special.

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There is some uncertainty regarding Lady Louise Windsor and James

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All of Wessex, both of officially joined family appearances in

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recent years but are not full time working royals. James

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attendance at Peter Phillips's wedding last year has led some

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royal observers to believe he may be included this year,

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though no official confirmation has been given. Names absent from

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the balcony may generate just as much discussion. Prince Harry

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and Meghan will not be present. Prince Andrew will also

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not appear. Once a prominent participant in trooping ceremonies, Andrew

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has been absent from the balcony lineup since stepping away

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from public duties. Likewise, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie are not

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expected to appear, despite their continued presents at family occasions

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such as Peter Phillips's wedding last weekend. Neither serves as

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a working royal, and both have been excluded from recent

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trooping balcony appearances. In his substack, Royal Inside a Deep

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Crown observes there is a particular sort of person who,

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come the second week of June, temporarily abandons whatever else

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occupies their time and turns their full attention to a

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single narrow question. Who will be on the balcony, not

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who will be in the procession, not who will be

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in the stands at horse guards, not who rode which

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horse or wore which medal. The balcony approximately thirty feet

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of stone frontage on the east wing of Buckingham Palace

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and the most consequential piece of real estate in the

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British calendar for perhaps minutes, positively for the assembled royal

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family stands upon it in waves at the crowd below,

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while the red arrows scream overhead, trailing red, white and blue.

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And in that brief window, the whole country takes its

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photograph and draws its conclusions. More palating just a moment. Hey,

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I'm sure you've heard us mention the Marius borg Oabi case,

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but aren't sure why it's become such a major's story.

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We'll check out our series Crown and Controversy Norway's Royal Rebels.

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Marius is the son of Crown Prince Madamerie and the

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step son of Norway's future king. The allegations against him

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have sparked a national debate about privilege, accountability, and the

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future of the Norwegian monarchy itself. What began as a

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criminal investigation has grown into the biggest challenge facing Norway's

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royal family in decades. To understand Monday's verdict and why

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it matters. Search for Crown and Controversy Norway's Royal Rebels.

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Wherever you get your podcasts, it's hosted by me, so

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I know you're going to like it. The Royal family

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may not actually be seeing much of the crowds when

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they step onto the Buckingham Palace balcony today. According to

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a report and according to a report in Readers Digest,

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the large Queen Victoria memorial positioned in front of the

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palace blocks much of the royals direct view down the mall,

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where thousands of people gather for major royal occasions. Instead,

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hidden television screens are reportedly installed on the balcony during

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major events so the family can watch both the crowds

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and the live broadcast. A source told Hello. They are

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placed in the corners of the balcony slightly canted. The

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balustrade is covered in red fabric so all the equipment

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can be hidden behind it. The article also revisited the

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now famous royal balcony kiss tradition, which reportedly began after

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King Charles forgot to kiss Princess Diana the altar during

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the nineteen eighty one wedding ceremony. The report explained the

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commoners unsurprisingly loved it, and the balcony kiss has been

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a tradition ever since. While much of the royal world's

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attention will be focused on trooping the color, another significant

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family event will be taking place later in the day.

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Lady Pamela Hicks, one of the last living links to

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the royal family's post war history, will be laid to

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rest in Oxfordshire. Lady Pamela passed away last week at

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the age of ninety seven. You can learn more about

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her by listening to yesterday morning's episode in this feed.

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The timing creates an unusual scheduling challenge for King Charles,

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with the traditional balcony appearance an array of flypast expected

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to conclude shortly after one o'clock, the funeral is scheduled

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for three. In theory, the King could attend both events.

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Royal observers point out that Childs demonstrated a similar feat

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just last weekend, attending Peter Phillips wedding in Gloucestershire before

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traveling on to Darby Day later. The same afternoon, her

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daughter India Hicks revealed that Lady Pamela had very simple

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wishes for her funeral. No eulogy, no sermon, no memorial,

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but please lots of rousing hymns and they have it

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if you'd like to email us addresses the Palace Intrigue

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at gmail dot com and to forget all this month,

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we're encouraging listeners of Palace Intrigue to help spread the word.

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better yet, to share an episode with someone who loves

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comment for us on Spotify. I'm Mark Francis. My Things

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to John McDermott, This is Palace Intrigue and good Times

Trooping the Colour 2026: Balcony Lineup, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, Prince Louis and King Charles

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