King Charles Softens on Andrew but reportedly annoyed that William Is Quietly Prepping for the Throne

King Charles is reportedly rethinking how harshly he sidelined his brother, Prince Andrew, as new details emerge about life behind the gates at Royal Lodge. According to palace insiders, Andrew lost staff, access to Windsor kitchens and even basic freedoms before the King quietly softened his stance and resumed regular contact.

Meanwhile, Andrew faces fresh reputational damage after another release of Epstein-related documents, with BBC analysis warning that Andrew’s long-running scandal may still have further depths to reach.

We also look at growing reports that King Charles the Third is uneasy with the intense focus on succession, and why some commentators believe the monarchy has become an unavoidable public soap opera.

Hear our new show "Crown and Controversy: Prince Andrew" here.

Check out "Palace Intrigue Presents: King WIlliam" here.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
A calorogus Shark Media that hello and welcome to Palace Intrigue.
I'm your host, Mark Francis. King Charles is said to
be quietly regretting how firmly he acted against his brother Andrew,
according to a report citing palace insiders, as the disgraced

(00:22):
former royal faces what are described as ongoing behind the
scenes degradations at Royal Lodge. Daily Meil columnist Ephraim hard
Castle writes that beyond losing his titles, honors and long
term home, Andrew has seen a series of lesser known
privileges stripped away. He says Andrew has lost royal staff

(00:43):
funded by the King, been cut off from Windsor Castle's kitchens,
and was issued with an instruction to stay out of
public view until he is eventually relocated. Hard Castle adds
that Andrew's final plea to his brother was not to
be reduced to the rank of commoner. In what is
described as a gentle softening of approach. The columnist reports

(01:03):
that King Charles is now telephoning Andrew frequently and has
begun restoring some access to staff and stables. For the BBC.
Sean Conflin writes every time you think the Andrew Mountbatten
Windsor story must have finished, there's another twist. The latest
batch of documents from the Epstein files includes emails that

(01:23):
could further damage his reputation, or perhaps his reputation is
already at rock bottom, and this will only reinforce existing
negative impressions. The identity of a who also uses the
name Invisible Man is not made clear, and we do
not know for sure it is Andrew. And there might
be some quizzical looks at some of the language in

(01:44):
the emails, for instance fall rather than autumn, which is
more like American English than British. But there are lines
in the emails that seem to tally with Andrew's biography,
such as talking about when he left the Royal Navy.
This is a downward spiral, and every time you think
it has ended, it keeps getting deeper, a source tells

(02:04):
us Weekly, William and Kate have been preparing for a
while in case Charles can no longer serve as monarch.
Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams explained there is an awareness that
not only are the Waleses and their family the obvious
future of the monarchy, but that William's time may come
sooner than originally expected. According to the outlet, Prince williams

(02:24):
already being positioned differently. A source said, he is becoming
more serious and we're all starting to see what kind
of a monarch he will be, adding that the palace
is consciously elevating and presenting him in an authoritative manner,
anticipating wants to come. Kate is still cautious about pacing
herself with her schedule and the kids schedule. A source
said she knows she will have to take on more

(02:45):
when she's queen. The source said the family is slowly
allowing Prince George to take on more responsibilities, making clear
that the next generation is already in view. Royal expert
Ingrid Seward says of George, he is a very impressive
young man, but I think William is anxious to bring
him up differently to how he himself was brought up
after his mother died. He is very conscious of not

(03:07):
wanting George to be seen as an elitist kid. He
just want him to be as ordinary as he can be.
I remember the Princess of Wales once saying that they
always discussed these appearances with George, and that he has
never pushed. William is doing what he can to get
him to look at the world in a certain way.
But you can see how good George was with those
old soldiers. He wants to do all these things, and

(03:29):
William is happy for him to have a taste of it,
but not the full meal. Royal biographer Christopher Wilson agrees
there is obviously valuable experience to be gained from seeing
his father operate as a charity patron and to see
the work of places like the passage when he is
so young. Ultimately, though, George is a twelve year old
boy and no more ready for this spotlight than William

(03:50):
was at that age or Charles was at that age.
The kindest thing they could do for his future is
to let him go and be a teenager at secondary school,
far away from the pressures of his life role and
the glare of the media. There will be enough of
that once he becomes an adult. William will know that
better than anyone, and insider adds William and Kate have
created their own bubble for themselves. They are a young

(04:12):
family trying to live as normal life as possible. They
are trying to enjoy the moments before they become king
and queen, and their lives change forever. According to sources,
the focus on Prince William's eventual succession has left the
King not thrilled. A source told Us Weekly he doesn't
feel great about it, as he has finally attained the
position he has waited for his whole life. Now that

(04:32):
he's king, everyone is focused on who will come next.
Another source rejected the idea that the Prince of Wales
has taken over the king's responsibilities, while acknowledging his readiness
for the future. The inside has said William has his
own office and staff separate from the King, and he
and Charles work closely together. Charles believes William will do
an incredible job as king, and he's very supportive. When

(04:54):
they don't agree, William respects his father's decisions. In the
Daily Many, Aan Wilson writes, the royal family has become
a ridiculous soap opera. We're all hooked on. This is
why I do have sympathy for Prince Harry, but Andrew
and Fergie's guzzling and fornication are beyond belief. There used
to be a convention that the press published only flattering

(05:16):
stories about the family. The public were kept in the
dark until a couple of days before the abdication in
nineteen thirty six of King Edward the Eighth, who quit
the job in order to marry an American devorcee. The squabbles,
the love affairs, the Royal families defects of character were
known only to themselves and their intimates. The public were
shown ideal versions of the story, the little princesses playing

(05:38):
with Corgi's, the whrse and grown ups reassuringly tweedy, seen
only when opening hospitals or attending religious services. But it
is all changed now. The Royal Family is a soap
opera in good senses as well as in bad. Why
are people addicted to East Enders or Coronation Street. It's
not because of all the characters are people we want

(05:59):
to be now. It's because we half recognize ourselves and
our own messy limes and the plot lines as the
characters fall out of love, have complicated liaisons, marital rows,
and face illness. By the time Prince Charles and his
siblings had grown up, it was open season, and we
the press felt free to recognize that the Royals were
human like the rest of us, and boy, oh boy,

(06:20):
what is soap opera? They all provided as the catalog
of mishaps, tragedies and scandals, and the previous paragraphs makes
clear there is something on the edge of ridiculous about
the Royal soap opera. None of them would have chosen
this to happen. Andrew and Fergie guzzling and fornicating and
spending other people's money, would much prefer not have been unmasked.
William and Kate would undoubtedly have much preferred it if

(06:43):
Harian Meghan had not been interviewed by Oprah. Winfrey claimed
that the royals and one of them were racist. They
would have preferred it if Harry's self pitying memoir Spear
had never been published, and that we did not know
that the two brothers had, on at least one occasion
come to blows. But it's all out now and nothing
that we read about this profoundly dysfunctional family could possibly

(07:03):
surprise us more palace in just a moment. Several county
pubs in the Cotswolds are favorites of the royal family.
According to a new research by fintech firm sum up.
The study examined venues frequented by a senior Royals using
trip Advisor reviews, Google rankings, and cost data to compile

(07:25):
its list. Among those highlighted worthy, Rattlebone Inn in Shehurston
and The Cat and Custed Pot in Shipton Moyne. Both
were singled out by Jack Stoukes, who worked in the
King Charles the Third's household at Highgrove for more than
two decades. Stukes said, when I was at Highgrove, William
and Harry used to go to the local pubs quite often.

(07:45):
There was one called the Cat and Custon that they
always used to go to with their friends. We would
all be drinking with our friends and they would sit
on the table next to us and say hello. It
was all very normal and informal. They were left alone
when they were there. It was nice for them to
just be able to go to the pub and be
normal for a time without all lies being on them.
The Rattlebones and the Vine Tree were others they used

(08:05):
to go to. They were just nice, normal pubs. The
food was good, but nothing fancy. They really enjoyed just
going to local pubs like the rest of us. According
to the rankings. The Rose and Crown and Winfield, Berkshire
took the top spot. It is said to have been
a favorite of Prince Harry and Meghan Markham while they
were living at Frogmore Cottage. Second place went to Dean
Street Townhouse in Soho, where the Duke and Duchess of

(08:27):
Sussex had their first date in twenty sixteen. Third was
the Vine Tree in Norton, located on the High Grove
State and they have it. Like to email us addresses
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hubs and leave us a nice review of enjoying the
show I Mark Francis my thanks to John McDermott. This

(08:49):
is Palace Intrigue and good terms.