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<v Speaker 1>Calorougu Shark Media had low and welcome through Palace intrigue

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<v Speaker 1>and I'm your host Francis. In an interview with sixty

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<v Speaker 1>Minutes Australia, former Royal Aid Jason nolf has offered a

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<v Speaker 1>rare glimpse into the private anguish experienced by Prince William

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<v Speaker 1>following the cancer diagnosis of the Princess of Wales. Mister Nelf,

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<v Speaker 1>who served as Chief Executive of the Royal Foundation for

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<v Speaker 1>the Prince and Princess at Wales until his departure at

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<v Speaker 1>the end of twenty twenty one, and who has also

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<v Speaker 1>worked for Prince Harry and Meghan Mirkel, recalled a particularly

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<v Speaker 1>heartrending telephone conversation with the Prince. He remarked, within a

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<v Speaker 1>couple of weeks, if you're Prince William you find out

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<v Speaker 1>that both your wife and your father have cancer, I

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<v Speaker 1>couldn't believe it. It was awful, absolutely awful. It's the

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<v Speaker 1>lowest I've ever seen him. But the problem was that

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<v Speaker 1>all this crazy conspiracy theory sto kicked off in the

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<v Speaker 1>background online. Was she really ill? But they didn't want

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<v Speaker 1>to say yet that she had cancer because they hadn't

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<v Speaker 1>told the children, and they were still working through how

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<v Speaker 1>to tell the children. It's very difficult to have this

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<v Speaker 1>stuff play out in the public eye, but he's chosen

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<v Speaker 1>to keep his thoughts on it private, and I think

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<v Speaker 1>all of us who know him really have to respect

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<v Speaker 1>that we should do the scene. But I will say,

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<v Speaker 1>of course, it's been hard and sad, especially for all

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<v Speaker 1>of us who know both of them. Nauf did not

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<v Speaker 1>shy away from the past bullying complaint. He lodged against

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<v Speaker 1>Megan Markle, allegations that her team has consistently dismissed as

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<v Speaker 1>a calculated smear campaign. Reflecting on that tumultuous period, he remarked,

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<v Speaker 1>I wouldn't change anything. You probably had to take your

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<v Speaker 1>own medicine. Sometimes you can't choose just to take the

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<v Speaker 1>fun stuff in any job, and that applies to the

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<v Speaker 1>Prince and Princess as well as everyone else working for them.

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<v Speaker 1>In later moments, mister Nolfh recounted a memorable faux pass

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<v Speaker 1>surrounding the announcement of Princess Charlotte's birth than twenty fifteen.

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<v Speaker 1>Tasked with drafting the official press release, he confessed to

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<v Speaker 1>having dropped the crucial slip of paper containing the details

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<v Speaker 1>an incident, he described with a mixture of humor and exasperation.

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<v Speaker 1>I had this piece of paper to go write this

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<v Speaker 1>press release, and I think I had dropped it somewhere

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<v Speaker 1>on the street, Oh my god, which we managed to

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<v Speaker 1>get through but not announce it. But somewhere on that

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<v Speaker 1>street the entire time was a piece of paper that

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<v Speaker 1>said there had been a little princess born, what time

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<v Speaker 1>and how much she weighed. He added that despite the chaos,

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<v Speaker 1>neither the media nor he ever recovered that missing document,

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<v Speaker 1>in fact that in the end was of little consequence. Further,

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<v Speaker 1>when the topic shifted to Prince William's recent decision to

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<v Speaker 1>sport a beard, Nouff was professionally candid. I love it.

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<v Speaker 1>I think it's great. But I've talked to him about it,

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<v Speaker 1>or tried to talk to him, and he's like, it's here,

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<v Speaker 1>I have a beard. No further conversation, he revealed, adding

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<v Speaker 1>with a twinkle in his eye, if she didn't like it,

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<v Speaker 1>it wouldn't be there. I can tell you that the

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<v Speaker 1>subject of the future, Nouf offered his thoughts on the

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<v Speaker 1>kind of King William might become. He shared, the thing

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<v Speaker 1>I have heard from Prince William is You're going to

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<v Speaker 1>do this in your own way. Every generation of the

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<v Speaker 1>royal family has to reinvent the role for the generation

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<v Speaker 1>that they serve. Addressing the bitter rift between William and

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<v Speaker 1>his brother Harry, Nulf described the situation as hard and sad,

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<v Speaker 1>and stressed the need for a discretion when discussing such

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<v Speaker 1>personal matters. Yet he was unequivocal in wishing Harry and

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<v Speaker 1>Meghan the absolute best, reminiscing fondly about working on their

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<v Speaker 1>wedding a magical experience, he says he will always treasure Meghan.

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<v Speaker 1>Markle now finds herself facing a notable setback over her

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<v Speaker 1>freshly minted as Ever brand documents filed at the United

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<v Speaker 1>States Patent and Trademark Office last October by her legal team,

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<v Speaker 1>sought to secure the right to sell an extensive range

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<v Speaker 1>of products, from aprons and clothing to jams and even

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<v Speaker 1>dog biscuits under the as Ever banner. However, The Daily

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<v Speaker 1>Mail reports, in a one hundred and forty five page

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<v Speaker 1>partial rejection issued in July twenty twenty three, the us

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<v Speaker 1>PTO barred her from selling clothing, citing an unfortunate similarity

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<v Speaker 1>to as Ever, a cut price Chinese Fast Fashioned brand

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<v Speaker 1>based in Shenzen that supplies high street retailers such as

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<v Speaker 1>H and M. The USPTO's decision was unambiguous. It stated

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<v Speaker 1>the marks are identical in sound and virtually identical in appearance,

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<v Speaker 1>and are thus confusingly similar for the purposes of determining

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<v Speaker 1>likelihood of confusion. The accompanying paperwork further noted registration of

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<v Speaker 1>the applied for mark is refused because of a likelihood

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<v Speaker 1>of confusion. In response, Megan's legal team failed a revision

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<v Speaker 1>application in January twenty twenty four one that removed any

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<v Speaker 1>mention of clothing and secured approval for her other product lines.

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<v Speaker 1>Yet sud Just wish to venture into the clothing market

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<v Speaker 1>in the future, she will need to select an entirely

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<v Speaker 1>new brand name. A Los Angeles trademark lawyer said last night.

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<v Speaker 1>If she sells clothing under the as Ever brand, she

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<v Speaker 1>risks being sued. Compounding the matter, the Duchess's original choice,

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<v Speaker 1>American Riviera Orchard, had already been rejected by the USPTO

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<v Speaker 1>on the grounds that geographical names are not eligible for

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<v Speaker 1>trademark registration. Food giant Harry and David further objected, arguing

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<v Speaker 1>that the name was too similar to their royal Riviera

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<v Speaker 1>Lion of Pears. Megan shared new Instagram stories from her picturesque,

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<v Speaker 1>eleven million pound Montecito mansion. The video clips, brimmed with

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<v Speaker 1>relaxed charm, show Megan taking a small break from work

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<v Speaker 1>to soak in the weekend amid the tranquil beauty of

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<v Speaker 1>her sprawling garden. The footage offers a series of glimpses

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<v Speaker 1>into life at the Californian retreat. In one clip, Megan

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<v Speaker 1>is seen smiling warmly at the sun, while another captures

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<v Speaker 1>her tending to her garden, water in hand and assisted

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<v Speaker 1>by one of her children. Other moments include shots of

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<v Speaker 1>a serene pond, the first blooms of the season, and

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<v Speaker 1>even a scene of her squeezing fresh fruit to prepare

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<v Speaker 1>a drink at a large outdoor table. Accompanying these serene

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<v Speaker 1>vignettes is her beloved rescue dog, Mamma Mia, adding a

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<v Speaker 1>further note of homely warmth to the scene. Some believe

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<v Speaker 1>one clip appears to pay tribute to the late Princess Diana.

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<v Speaker 1>In the clip, the Duchess of sussext scene ambling through

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<v Speaker 1>the garden of her Montecito mansion, and in one memorable snippet,

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<v Speaker 1>she dons the iconic purple Northwestern jumper, the very same

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<v Speaker 1>piece famously worn by Diana in nineteen ninety six during

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<v Speaker 1>her visit to Northwestern University's Evanston campus. On the other hand,

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<v Speaker 1>Megan attended Northwestern University, so it's possible a sweatshirt is

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<v Speaker 1>justice sweatshirt pellas Indrigaboro back, a controversial new book is

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<v Speaker 1>casting fresh light on the financial affairs of Prince Andrew,

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<v Speaker 1>and it appears that his business dealings could now be

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<v Speaker 1>posing an immediate problem for the Queen's son. In his

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<v Speaker 1>upcoming work, The Lives of the Duke and Duchess of York,

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<v Speaker 1>author Andrew Lowney, who spent four years meticulously investigating the

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<v Speaker 1>Duke's life, claims that the public image of Prince Andrew

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<v Speaker 1>as a solitary figure content with long horse rides and

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<v Speaker 1>leisurely video games at the royal lodges far from the reality.

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<v Speaker 1>Lowney alleges that the Duke has continued his business activities

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<v Speaker 1>with recent trips to the Middle East and Switzerland, all

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<v Speaker 1>while financing and extravagant lifestyle. The Duke's lavish living arrangements

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<v Speaker 1>are well documented, from occupying a thirty two room royal

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<v Speaker 1>lodge to owning a Swiss chalet reportedly worth eighteen million pounds,

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<v Speaker 1>not to mention a collection of luxury watchers, a two

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<v Speaker 1>hundred and twenty thousand pound Bentley, and an array of

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<v Speaker 1>range rovers. Lowneye warns the King can only hope there

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<v Speaker 1>are no further scandals to emerge in the press and

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<v Speaker 1>public soon lose interest in his brother. On present evidence

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<v Speaker 1>that is very unlikely. In addition to scrutinizing Prince Andrew's

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<v Speaker 1>financial conduct, Lowney's research delves into the business affairs of

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<v Speaker 1>his ex wife, Sarah, Duchess of Yorkham, their daughters, Princess

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<v Speaker 1>Beatrice and Princess Eugenie. He also reveals that these significant

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<v Speaker 1>challenges faced in his investigation. According to Lowney, researching Andrew

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<v Speaker 1>has been a remarkably difficult process, despite the expectation that

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<v Speaker 1>there should be thousands of publicly available files relating to

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<v Speaker 1>his decade long role as Special Representative, a period during

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<v Speaker 1>which he was a taxpayer funded public servant. Yet freedom

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<v Speaker 1>of information requests to both the Foreign Office and the

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<v Speaker 1>Department of Business and Trade have repeatedly come back empty handed.

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<v Speaker 1>This opacity is compounded by the additional protection afforded to

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<v Speaker 1>the royal family. As a result, even vital documents such

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<v Speaker 1>as wills remain shrouded in secrecy, a matter that has

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<v Speaker 1>previously sparked controversy following Prince Philip's death. As Loudey points out,

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<v Speaker 1>even the contents of Queen Elizabeth will remain unknown, leaving

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<v Speaker 1>questions about what, if anything, the Queen may have bequeathed

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<v Speaker 1>to Prince Andrew. Lowry's book is set for release later

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<v Speaker 1>this year and they you have it plus email us

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<v Speaker 1>addresses the Palace intrig at gmail dot com. Please follows

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<v Speaker 1>the show, don't forget. We have a new series out

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<v Speaker 1>currently running called White Smoke The Path to a New Pope.

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<v Speaker 1>Very tamely and poignant and a good series behind the

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<v Speaker 1>methodology in the election of a new Pope. Check it

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<v Speaker 1>out wherever you get your podcast White Smoke The Path

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<v Speaker 1>to a New Pope and it's new from Calaogut Shark Media.

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<v Speaker 1>Mind France has mean Thanks to you, John McDermot. This

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<v Speaker 1>is palace injury good terms,