Harry ‘Wales’ Confusion, and the Sussex Six Figure Dinner Auction

Prince Harry sparks online confusion after being introduced as “Harry Wales” at a snow polo event in Aspen, despite his formal title remaining Duke of Sussex — and after Meghan recently insisted on the Sussex name publicly.

We also cover reports that Harry and Meghan auctioned an exclusive dinner with themselves for charity, with bids said to reach six figures, and a viral unboxing video featuring gifts from Meghan’s As Ever brand. Royal Insider Deep Crown weighs in on the monarchy’s Christmas predictability — and what happens when it becomes annual drama. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Callarogus Shark Media. Hello and welcome to Balace Intrigue. I
am your host, Mark Francis. Prince Harry has sparked online
backlash after being introduced as Harry Wales during a recent
appearance at a polo event in the United States. The
Duke of Sussex was playing in the Saint Regis World
Snow Polo Championship in Aspen, where he stepped in for

(00:25):
a friend on the Aspen Valley team. While his participation
in the match itself drew little criticism, controversy followed when
a commentator referred to him as Harry Wales. You may
recall it earlier in the year, Meghan made a big
deal to Mindy Kaling that her name was Meghan Sussex.
The name Wales is traditionally associated with the children of
the Prince of Wales. It was used by Prince Harry

(00:47):
during his childhood when his father, King Charles the Third
held the title Prince of Wales. Since Charles ascended the throne,
the title has passed to Prince William and his family
now uses the Wales designation. Despite stepping back from royal duties.
Prince Harry's formal title remains Duke of Sussex, which he
was granted on his wedding day in twenty eighteen, and
typically uses at public events. The use of Harry Wales

(01:10):
therefore caused confusion among royal watchers. The Express reported Harry
what's his name bravely shook off a hand injury. According
to a witness quote and by page six, the Prince
suffered a small knock to his hand during the game
when it was accidentally clipped by one of Nacho Figera's
sons as he swung as mallet. The source said they
paused for a second and he shook it off. Harry

(01:33):
and Megan are reported to have offered an exclusive dinner
with themselves to the highest bidder as part of a
charity fundraiser, with the price said to reach six figures.
According to reports, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex auctioned
the dinner experience to raise funds for Archwealth philanthropies, with
bids believed to have been around one hundred thousand dollars.
The arrangement is said to have been handled through the

(01:55):
high end fundraising platform charity buzz, although the experience does
not appear to have been publicly listed on the company's
website and may have been offered privately to major donors.
A spokesperson for Archwell confirmed to The Mail that the
charity has worked with charity Buzz before, saying we have
partnered with numerous fundraising partners over the years, and charity
Buzz has been one of them. Charity Buzz has raised

(02:18):
hundreds of millions of dollars for charitable causes and has
previously offered access to celebrities including George Clooney, Beyonce and
Sir Paul McCartney. Current listings on the platform include dinner
with actor Bob Odenkirkin, premium tickets to major reward events.
The fundraiser would not have been permitted during Harry and
Meghan's time as senior working members of the Royal Family,

(02:38):
when strict rules applied to selling access to royals. The
issue of monetizing Royal connections has long been sensitive, particularly
following past controversies involving other family members. A completely natural,
organic not all contrived video showing Megan making a sweet
gesture to a young fan has gone viral on social media.

(03:00):
In the two minute clipper, young girl named Flori Anne
is seen unboxing a surprise package from Meghan's lifestyle brand
as Ever good Thing. The camera was rolling. The videos
caption reads, It's from Meghan. Still a little speechless, but
so full of gratitude. Inside the boxer several fruit spreads,
two jars of honey, a candle in Meghan's signature flower sprinkles.

(03:21):
Flori Anne's mother, Florence Blondelle, shared further details on Instagram
about how the gifts arrived. She wrote, Meghan came through
for flori Anne with sweetest as ever official goodies, lots,
and our household has truly been floating on cloud nine
ever since. Thank you for gifting my little Froggy, and
thank you again for reposting flori Anne's story. We finally

(03:42):
watched the at Netflix hashtag with Love Meghan Holiday Celebration
special on December fourth, and her heart was completely at peace.
Mine two Royal inside a Deep Crown seems frustrated with
the Royals as Christmas telling palace intrigue. There was a
time when the Royal family these Christmas arrangements required no
explanation because everyone understood the rules. The family gathered at Sandringham,

(04:05):
attended church at Saint Mary Magdalene and the Queen delivered
her broadcast. One might not have liked the protocol, but
one knew what it was. Her Late Majesty's genius lay
in making these systems run so smoothly that most people
never noticed they were systems at all. Decisions about who
attended what weren't contentious because they'd been settled decades prior
by hierarchy and president. The monarchy's great strength has always

(04:28):
been its predictability. When every Christmas brings fresh drama about
who will attend what and whether they'll process to service,
the season ceases to be a demonstration of stability and
becomes another front in ongoing institutional uncertainty one hesitates to invoke.
It wasn't like this in Elizabeth's day, But I'm afraid
in this instance it's simply true. It wasn't exciting, it

(04:49):
wasn't spontaneous, but one always knew where one stood, and
in monarchy, knowing where one stands is rather more valuable
than people realize, usually just after they've lost it. More
palas in just a moment in the Express, Chris Rich's writes,
Prince Harry's nightmare has almost ended, but as William's just begun.

(05:11):
When Prince Harry and Meghan downed Royal Tools in twenty twenty,
they fled for the quiet and privacy of California, citing
security fears if they as much returned to the UK
as a family of four. Since then, the pair have
barely left our screens, with a relentless slew of podcast books,
tell all interviews, late night chat show appearances, and bile
inducing at home with lifestyle streaming shows. For his poor

(05:33):
older brother Prince William, protective of a wife Catherine as
she recovers from her twenty twenty four cancer diagnosis, each
TV expers a or new book packed with private family conversations,
adds salt to the wounds. So the idea that Harry
and Meghan could soon be spending an awful lot more
time in the UK may not fill him with happy
family's euphoria, more like awkward dread. In May, Prince Harry

(05:55):
lost a legal case to have his police protection reinstated
when visiting the UK. This doesn't stop the Sussex's jetting
over the Atlantic any time they want. They still boast
millions in the bank from cashing in on his name
so he can afford a legion of unarmed private security,
no offense to their famously brittle egos. But if Hollywood
superstars can be seen wandering the streets of Soho and
Primrose Hill on there, Todd, then the Sussexes can jet

(06:16):
in with a few dozen burly bounces. With all the
recent talk of royal titles, a new account has shed
light on an extraordinary moment between Queen Elizabeth I and
Sir Winston Churchill, revealing that the late monarch once considered
offering her first prime minister a dukedom. The story appears
in Valentine Lowe's book Power and the Palace, which explores
the relationship between the sovereign and her governments. Churchill served

(06:39):
as Prime Minister when the Queen came to the throne
in nineteen fifty two, and the two developed a notably
warm rapport. She attended a farewell dinner at Downing Street
when he left office in nineteen fifty five, and she
later made the rare decision to attend his funeral at
Saint Paul's Cathedral, a gesture seldom extended to anyone outside
the royal family. According to low the Queen was willing
to offer Churchill a dukedom, despite long standing convention that

(07:01):
such titles be reserved for members of the royal family.
The proposal was said to have been contingent on Downing
Street ensuring in advance that Churchill would decline, as the
Palace did not wish to create a president. Those close
to the former Prime Minister assumed he would refuse outright. However,
Low rites that Churchill admitted he had briefly considered accepting.
When his private secretary, John Colville asked why he ultimately declined,

(07:24):
Churchill explained, well, you know, I very nearly accepted. I
was so moved by her beauty and charm and the
kindness with which he made this offer that for a
moment I thought of accepting, but finally I remembered that
I must die as I always have been Winston Churchill.
The title was never conferred, and Churchill remained at commoner
for the rest of his life, as he wished. Not

(07:45):
everyone in the family is obsessed with titles. Among them
are Princess Anne's children, Zara Tyndall and Peter Phillips, who
were first cousins of Prince William, but largely stay out
of the spotlight the same as true of the children
of Prince Edward and Sophie, Zara, Peter, Louise and James,
all sheer an important distinction. Unlike many of their cousins,
they do not use prince or princess titles and are
not style his or her Royal Highness. There was a

(08:07):
deliberate choice made by their parents, who decided their children
could choose whether to use titles once they reached adulthood.
According to The Daily Mail, James has now turned eighteen
and has chosen not to adopt the title of prince.
Royal commentator Richard Eden said Prince Edward and Sophie's son James,
turned eighteen yesterday, but he won't be celebrating by following
the example of his cousins across the Atlantic. Eden added

(08:29):
the James, who is sixteenth in line to the throne,
will not untold be using his titles, with a source
saying that's the last sort of thing he's interested in.
His mother, Sophie previously explained the family's approach in an
interview with The Sunday Times. She said, we try to
bring them up with the understanding that they are very
likely to have to work for a living, Hence we
made the decision not to use HRH titles. They have

(08:50):
them and they can decide to use them from eighteen,
but it's highly unlikely and they have it. If you
like to email us O addresses the Palace Intrigue at
gmail on dot com. Please followus on Spotify, Apple, the
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and Instagram. I'm Mark Francis my thanks to John McDermott.
This is Palace Intrigue and good times.