WILLIAM'S GAME OF THRONES

Schemes to topple dying dad & take control with Kate

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WILY Prince William plans to seize the throne from his dying father, King Charles, to save both his marriage and the scandal-shaken monarchy in a palace plot preordained by the late Queen Elizabeth, sources say.

According to insiders, the Prince of Wales, 42, has turned up the heat on the long-simmering coup after the 76-year-old king's recent hospitalization for side effects from treatment of his publicly undisclosed form of cancer because his concerned wife, Kate, issued a damning divorce ultimatum.

Tipsters say William is keenly aware of his father's deteriorating health and heeding 43-year-old Kate's demand that he wrest control to keep his power-hungry stepmother, Queen Camilla, from running roughshod over the palace.

"King Charles is much sicker than anyone lets on and simply isn't up to the job of running his fractious family, the crown's business interests and fulfilling the daily duties of the monarchy," a member of the royal inner circle confides. "His cancer is eating him alive."