Speaker 1: Calorogus Shark Media. Hello and welcome through palace intrigue. I
Speaker 1: am your host, Mark Francis. In the often isolating world
Speaker 1: of royal duty, King Charles's fortunate to have a small
Speaker 1: but steadfast inner circle, and none more vital than his
Speaker 1: sister Princess Anne. While Queen car Miller is Charles' unwavering
Speaker 1: partner in public and private life, it is the Princess
Speaker 1: Royal who serves as the King's no nonsense sounding board.
Speaker 1: Former BBC Royal correspondent Jenny Bond describes Anne as solid
Speaker 1: and completely reliable, a woman who knows him inside and
Speaker 1: out and offers infinitely sensible advice. Their closeness was underscored
Speaker 1: at the coronation, when the King entrusted Anne with the
Speaker 1: historic role of gold Stick in Waiting, a ceremonial post
Speaker 1: tasked with the monarch's personal security. Princess Anne's blunt, pragmatic
Speaker 1: style has earned her deep respect not only from her
Speaker 1: brother but from the wider public. She is known to
Speaker 1: speak her mind, even when it diverges from the royal consensus.
Speaker 1: In a twenty twenty three interview with CBC News, and
Speaker 1: openly questioned the merits of her brother's plans for a
Speaker 1: streamlined monarchy, saying simply, it doesn't sound like a good idea.
Speaker 1: The king's former gardener had nice things to say about
Speaker 1: Charles to The Mirror. Jack Stooks said he was very
Speaker 1: much on the ball all the time. If he came
Speaker 1: home at the weekend, he would be out in the
Speaker 1: garden checking what's been done, what hasn't been done. He
Speaker 1: would be like, this needs doing. That means doing, the
Speaker 1: former head gardener explains, So it was really good to
Speaker 1: know you're working for somebody who actually took everything in.
Speaker 1: Stooks said that level of interest gave the team a
Speaker 1: sense of satisfaction because their work was being enjoyed and
Speaker 1: admired by the person who owns it. Stucks enjoyed all
Speaker 1: the usual suspects, from Camilla to William and Kate and
Speaker 1: even Harry, saying I think for me, it's just the
Speaker 1: normality of how they are as people. People looking in
Speaker 1: from the outside might say, do we have to give
Speaker 1: them money a year? But the amount of work they
Speaker 1: do for the country is just immense. You see the
Speaker 1: amount of work Charles is still doing and he's just
Speaker 1: not giving up. He could say I'm ill. I can't
Speaker 1: do this and the country would understand, but he's got
Speaker 1: a sense of duty. A new National park honoring Queen
Speaker 1: Elizabeth the Second will be built in Saint James Park,
Speaker 1: directly opposite Buckingham Palace, commemorating her historic seventy year reign
Speaker 1: and seventy three year marriage to Prince Philip. The design
Speaker 1: includes a statue of the late Queen in a newly
Speaker 1: created civic space named Queen Elizabeth I, placed near Marlborough Gate,
Speaker 1: as well as a corresponding Prince Philip Gate and statue
Speaker 1: at the park's bird Cage Walk entrance. The centerpiece is
Speaker 1: a striking new translucent bridge inspired by the Queen Mary
Speaker 1: Fringe diamond tiara, famously worn and briefly broken on Her
Speaker 1: Majesty's nineteen forty seven wedding day, replacing the park's existing
Speaker 1: blue bridge. The new structure is described as a symbol
Speaker 1: of unity, honoring Queen Elizabeth's role in bringing together communities,
Speaker 1: charities and commonwealth. Surrounding grounds will also be transformed. Visitors
Speaker 1: can expect a family of gardens, winding paths, and a
Speaker 1: bodern wind structure intended to create space for reflection and
Speaker 1: remembrance all sat within the familiar landscape of Saint James Park.
Speaker 1: Lord Foster, the architect behind the memorial and the designer
Speaker 1: of the Gurkhin, said the entire plan had been created
Speaker 1: with a light touch, ensuring the natural character of the
Speaker 1: park remains intact. The feeling should be that if you
Speaker 1: visit Saint James Park and the site in question later,
Speaker 1: it will still feel very familiar, he explained. He called
Speaker 1: the bridge a symbol of the Queen's quiet, strength and continuity,
Speaker 1: adding that the memorial space would feel gentler, quieter, more contemplative.
Speaker 1: Prime Minister Kirstarmer has said the memorial offer everyone a
Speaker 1: place to honour the late Queen and connect with the
Speaker 1: shared history we cherish. Public consultation played a role in
Speaker 1: selecting the design, with five initial concepts displayed in the
Speaker 1: park earlier this year. The Queen Elizabeth Memorial Committee ultimately
Speaker 1: chose the final design with input from both experts and
Speaker 1: the public. Memorial is expected to be unveiled in twenty
Speaker 1: twenty six, timed to coincide with what would have been
Speaker 1: Queen Elizabeth's one hundredth birthday year. Statues of the late
Speaker 1: Queen already stand in several locations across the UK, but
Speaker 1: this will serve as the national focal point for remembrance
Speaker 1: in the Capitol. A rather fascinating royal adjacent tale. Now
Speaker 1: as a woman known to her loyal lunchtime clan till
Speaker 1: simply as Francis, is going viral for her quietly aristocratic
Speaker 1: roots and delightfully unorthodox restaurant just a stone's throw from
Speaker 1: Buckingham Palace. Lady Francis Armstrong Jones, the daughter of Lord Snowden,
Speaker 1: thus half sister to Lady Sarah Chatthow, is indeed the
Speaker 1: product of a royal adjacent lineage. Her father, the photographer
Speaker 1: Anthony Armstrong Jones, married Princess Margaret in nineteen sixty and
Speaker 1: was subsequently made Earl of Snowden. That union produced two children,
Speaker 1: David and Sarah, making them the only cousins of King Charles,
Speaker 1: the third on his mother's side. After the Snowdon's divorce
Speaker 1: in nineteen seventy eight, Lord Snowden went Lucy Hogg. Daughter
Speaker 1: Francis was born seven months later, now forty five. Lady
Speaker 1: Francis might not appear on the Buckingham Palace balcony, but
Speaker 1: she does run one of the most singular lunch establishments
Speaker 1: in London, nestled just three miles from the Palace, The
Speaker 1: Yellow Bitteren is a postage stamp sized eatery with only
Speaker 1: eighteen seats open weekdays for just two lunch sittings. Reservations
Speaker 1: are available by phone or charmingly postcard payments cash only.
Speaker 1: There is no fixed menu. Dinah's simply read what's on
Speaker 1: offer each day, written up on a chalkboard. More Palace
Speaker 1: In just a moment. Now that Lieutenant Colonel Haughty is
Speaker 1: off the market, there's a new soldier catching the eyes
Speaker 1: of Royal watchers. They were supposed to be looking at
Speaker 1: the King, but instead their eyes locked on someone else entirely.
Speaker 1: During a recent visit to the Royal Regiment of Artillery
Speaker 1: in lark Hill, King Charles shared a moment of camaraderie
Speaker 1: with military personnel while donning ear defenders and trying his
Speaker 1: hand at firing an artillery gun. But it wasn't the
Speaker 1: cannon fire that set the Internet light. It was Sergeant
Speaker 1: Neil Mitchell, the green beret wearing detachment commander, who appeared
Speaker 1: in one of the royal family's Instagram photos and promptly
Speaker 1: broke the comments section. Are we not going to talk
Speaker 1: about the green beret guy in the first picture? Good heavens,
Speaker 1: he's handsome, gushed one user. Another admitted, I do love
Speaker 1: the king honestly, but my eyes went straight to the
Speaker 1: really muscly guy with the green beret and the killer smile.
Speaker 1: A third summed it up succentilly the photographer understood the assignment.
Speaker 1: Mitchell forty six Commands fourteen Regiment thirty four Battery and
Speaker 1: wore the coveted green beret signifying completion of the elite
Speaker 1: All Arms Commando course. His casual charm and warm gren
Speaker 1: in the background of the King's Instagram post quickly earned
Speaker 1: him unofficial fan favorite status, just as at the record
Speaker 1: straight when comment to claiming to be his sister added,
Speaker 1: he's not single, sorry, ladies. The royal visit had originally
Speaker 1: been postponed, but Mitchell said it was an honor to
Speaker 1: be selected as the commander. While the King fired his gun.
Speaker 1: He did awesome, Mitchell told Forces News, noting that Charles
Speaker 1: needed two triers to master the firing lever. The first
Speaker 1: one he didn't give it a good enough pull, but
Speaker 1: the second time was faultless. Charles was seen grinning after
Speaker 1: a successful shot and later received an engraved one hundred
Speaker 1: and five millimeter cartridge fired during the coronation, the King
Speaker 1: was also treated to a display of modern military equipment
Speaker 1: and met with soldiers, families and Chelsea pensioners. Inside the
Speaker 1: officer's mess he viewed his great grandfather George the fifths
Speaker 1: ceremonial too. Nickan commented it's lasted very well, but on
Speaker 1: social media it was Mitchell who left the lasting impression.
Speaker 1: This is in the first time a Royal aid has
Speaker 1: turned into an unlikely Internet crush. Lieutenant Colonel Johnny Thompson,
Speaker 1: dubbed the hot Equerry and known as Major Hotty before
Speaker 1: his promotion, became a viral sensation during Queen Elizabeth the
Speaker 1: Second's funeral and again at Charles's coronation. Though he eventually
Speaker 1: stepped away from public facing duties due to all attention,
Speaker 1: he became the subject of fan accounts and swooning comment threads. Thompson,
Speaker 1: now remarried to a PR executive named Olivia, was most
Speaker 1: recently seen with the royal family at Christmas, though his
Speaker 1: try to maintain a lower profile. As for Sergeant Mitchell,
Speaker 1: he's yet to issue any official statement, but he may
Speaker 1: want to prepare. Once the royal fans fall in love,
Speaker 1: they don't forget, and, judging by the latest Instagram frenzy,
Speaker 1: hot Beret man may have just fired more than artillery
Speaker 1: and they have it. If you like to email us
Speaker 1: have addresses The Palace Intrigue at gmail dot com. Please
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Speaker 1: us a nice review. If you're enjoying the show, I'm
Speaker 1: Mark Francis. I think, to John mcdermoth, this is Palace
Speaker 1: Intrigue and catains