Jan. 31, 2026

Why Did Prince William Skip The King's Premiere and What It Says About the Royals

Show Notes
Transcript

Questions swirl after Prince William and Kate are noticeably absent from the premiere of King Charles’ new environmental documentary at Windsor Castle, with commentators asking whether the missed appearance signals deeper family strain. Meanwhile, renewed scrutiny follows a magazine profile positioning Kate as a future queen, prompting debate over timing and optics with Queen Camilla. The episode also looks at growing speculation over where Prince George will attend secondary school, William’s candid moments on public duty and debate culture, and the appointment of a new chief executive at the Royal Foundation as the Wales household enters a new chapter.

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Calorougus Shark Media, Hello and welcome through Palace Intrigue game

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you host Mark Francis. In The Royalist, Tom Sykes asks

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a good question, why wasn't a Prince William at his

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father's film premiere? Sikes writes, if William cared to stamp

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out whispers that the relationship between King Charles and himself

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has curdled, and attending the Windsor Castle premiere of the

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King's new film finding harmony of King's vision would have

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been an easy way to do it. But he wasn't there,

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And the empty chairs where the Prince and Princess of

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Wales might have sat Wednesday night reinforced the sense of

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a family that can't help advertising its own fractures The

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explanation I guarantee you will be about not overshadowing the King. True,

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the Wales's do command a lot of attention simply by

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turning up, but in this case the messaging would have

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been amazing. The air at the King's side a statement

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of support, a visible endorsement of a cause Charles has

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made his life's work, and William is continuing with Earth Shot.

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William has his own environmental brand in Earthshot and it's

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been pitched as the heir's signature project, modern pragmatic, pitched

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to a younger audience. In bringing VC energy to dreary

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old du Goudery, the palace could have had a great

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narrative of continuity. The King is the spiritual architect, the

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Prince of Wales is the heir, the institution united around it,

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defining cause. Instead, the audience has left to wonder why

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the heir didn't want to be in the roomors his

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father tried to frame the meaning of his reign. Questions

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have been raised about possible tensions within the royal family

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following a magazine profile focused on the future role of

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Catherine as queen. The article appeared in The Times magazine

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under the prince headline Arise Queen Kate the Princess's friends

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and palace insiders on how she will change the Royal family,

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while the online version carried the headline Kate will be

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a Queen who really listens by Pallas Insiders. Daily Mail

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columnist Amanda Platel questioned the decision to allow friends to

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speak publicly. She wrote, did those close long term friends

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of Willim and Kate have their approval to talk? Did

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Kate and Winnim in Fax sanction this article on The

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Times magazine about her intentions when she becomes queen. We

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may never know, but even if they did not, it

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is surely ill advised of their close circle to talk

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about her future in this way. Keith would never have

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intended any slight against Camilla, of course, but I can't

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be the only person to think that this emphasis on

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her queenly qualities is a slap in the face for

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the present Queen. The family has not yet made a

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final decision about where Prince George will attend secondary school,

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according to a new report, despite longstanding assumptions that he

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would follow his father to Eton College, Prince George, who

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turns thirteen this summer, will finish his time at Lambrook

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School at the end of the academic year and is

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expected to move on to secondary school in September. While

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Eaton College has often been described as the obvious choice,

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a source told Vanity Fair that the Prince and Princess

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of Wales are leaning towards other schools and that nothing

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has been formally decided. The source suggested that Marlborough College,

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where Kate was educated, is currently viewed by some as

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the front runner as a co educational school. Marlboro would

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allow Prince George to attend the same school as his

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siblings in the future, something said to be an important

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consideration for the family. Fees at Marlboro College currently standard

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about seventy eighty five hundred dollars per year for borders

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and roughly sixty two eight hundred per year for day students.

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The two hundred and eighty six acre campus offers extensive facilities,

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including tennis courts, cricket and football pitches, a swimming pool,

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a rifle and archery range, and an on site observatory.

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Another source toll the magazine that while no decision is final,

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there has been talk with Marlboro circles that accommodation has

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been identified for George, with security described as a key factor. However,

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speculation around Eaton continues. Prince William himself attended Eton from

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nineteen ninety five, and many observers still believe it remains

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as strong contender. Majesty magazine editor Ingrid Seward told Vanity

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Fair that Eton is a very different school today than

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when William was there, adding that while William enjoyed his

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time at the school, he has expressed concerns about how

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it might look for George to attend such an elite

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and expensive institution. William has spoken candidly about the challenges

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of helping George with schoolwork. During a recent visit to

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the University of Bristol, the Prince of Wales was shown

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Ismbard ai, described as the most powerful supercomputer in the UK.

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As part of his visit, he was presented with three

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small lego figurines of engineer Ismbard Kingdom Brunell to take

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home to his children. In a video shared by the university,

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Evelyn Welsh, Vice Chancellor and President of the University of Bristol,

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said we were really pleased to give Prince William three

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little lego models of Ismbard Kingdom Brunell to take home

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to his children. He left saying that he knew where

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to come when George needed help with his homework. William

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made a rare lighthearted about his family life and his

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new Windsor home while carrying out a royal engagement in

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North London. During a visit to the Ubel Initiative. The

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Prince of Wales was chatting with staff when one person

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mentioned that her family also lives in Windsor and hinted

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they would love to visit his home there. William responded

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with a laugh, asking are you inviting your family to stay?

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Should we talk diaries and work out timings before joking,

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It's not the maddest question I've ever been asked. William

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has encouraged young photographers to continue pushing their creativity after

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viewing their work during the visit. Among those he met

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were Jeremiah sixteen and Elijah fourteen, members of the Society

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for the Advancement of Black Arts, who showed the Prince

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an exhibition of their photography. Speaking after the visit, Elijah said,

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it was like a blessing, truly. It was so crazy

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when he came and I saw him and it was like, damn,

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he's the Prince getting his opinions on photography and art itself.

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It was really beautiful to see. You don't have any

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famous people coming here, and for the future king to

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come and see us and see the art that we

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have done, it's truly admiring. When you see big people

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like that interested, you want to push yourself further and

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think how can I break boundaries? Jeremiah said the visit

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reinforced the value of their work, telling reporters the art

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has worth to it, it has valued, it will definitely

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be a memorable experience. The Prince coming to see it

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is something that should be valued and thought of all

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the time for years to come. The Prince later took

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part in a round table discussion on career opportunities for

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young black people, asking participants about the barriers they face.

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TV presenter Big Zoo, who also attended, said the Prince's

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presence showed that maybe we are being heard by the elite,

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adding him being engaged doesn't mean he will fix everything overnight,

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but at least we've got his ear. We also warned

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the art of debating is being lost. He said, everyone

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just wants to send a quick message on social media

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or a quick text. It has fired off and usually

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rated incorrectly, or it's got different connotations in it. We

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have lost the art of debating more palace in just

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a moment. William and Kate's new chief executive, Sarah Henwood,

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has issued a public statement ahead officially joining the Prince

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and Princess of Wales' team next week. Henwood, who brings

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three decades of experience in public service broadcasting and most

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recently served as Channel five President and UK regional lead

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at Paramount, said she was approaching the role with awe

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excitement and a fresh energy. She added that after her

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long media career, it was time for something completely different.

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She confirmed that she will take up the reins of

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the Royal Foundation in February, marking the start of her

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tenure overseeing the charitable organization run by the Prince and

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Princess of Wales. In a LinkedIn post, Henwood said, I'm

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not a big poster on LinkedIn, but i will use

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this platform going forward to shine a light on some

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of the remarkable initiatives the Foundation is working on for

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the Prince and Princess of Wales. She also announced a

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personal change alongside her professional move, explaining she is reverting

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to her family name and while I'm embracing change and

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joining a new network, i am completing this brand of

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sorts by updating my name. Rose was not my maiden name,

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so it's time to become a Henward like my husband

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and children. It will take me a while to get

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used to it, but it feels the right time to

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be making the change. Next episode starts in one week,

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and then you have it like to email us of

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addresses The Palasintrigue at gmail and dot com. Please fall

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us on Spotify, Apple or the Apple for your choice.

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Check us out on all these social media hubs. By

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Mark Francis my thanks to John mcdermoy. This is Palace

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Intrigue and good times.

Why Did Prince William Skip The King's Premiere and What It Says About the Royals

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