Prince Harry joked about never being scrutinised and taking advice from a reiki healer today as he appeared in a video for a charity stand up comedy event for US veterans.
The Duke of Sussex wore his British military medals and a poppy on a suit jacket during a monologue for the video filmed at his £12million home in Montecito, California.
Harry, 39, poked fun at himself during the clip for the Stand Up for Heroes show and also joked about people with ginger hair like himself being an ‘endangered species’.
The video was released online just before his father King Charles III was due to set off to give his first King’s speech at the state opening of the British Parliament in London this morning.
Harry’s appearance at the show was done virtually, despite him flying on a private jet with wife Meghan Markle to a Katy Perry concert in Las Vegas on Saturday. It is not clear when his gag-laden speech was filmed.
The 17th edition of the annual event which raises funds to support members of the armed forces was hosted at the Lincoln Center in New York City yesterday. It was hosted by British comedian Jimmy Carr and stars performing included comedian Tracy Morgan and The Boss, Bruce Springsteen, and his friend John Mellencamp.
Harry and Meghan were in the Big Apple a few weeks ago, but on this occasion the Duke of Sussex appears to have filmed a message from the garden of Montecito mansion. He did a video message last time he appeared at the event, during the pandemic.
Prince Harry appears in a video message during Stand Up For Heroes in New York last night
The audience at Stand Up For Heroes in New York last nightn watch Prince Harry’s address
Bruce Sprinsteen and John Mellencamp perform onstage at Stand Up For Heroes last night
Comedian Tracy Morgan performs onstage during the Stand Up For Heroes event last night
At the start of his monologue, reported first by Hello! magazine, Harry said: ‘Hello New York. Obviously I was deeply honoured when Bob asked me to debut my stand-up act with you all tonight.’
This was a reference to journalist Bob Woodruff and the Bob Woodruff Foundation, which hosted the event with the New York Comedy Festival.
The Duke also said: ‘Due to the shockingly low representation of gingers last year, and out of respect for my fellow endangered species, here I am, reporting for duty.’
And he joked: ‘As someone who never gets scrutinised, I haven’t even had to prepare much.
‘But out of an abundance of caution, I have been working on this particular act for quite some time and everyone I know tells me it’s perfect.
‘And no, these aren’t people who just tell me what I want to hear, these are people like my finance manager, my lawyer, and of course, my reiki healer.’
But he then went on to a more serious message.
He said: ‘I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, service is what happens in the quiet and the chaos.
‘And whether we are wearing the uniform or not, we must continue to uphold the values we learned side by side on the base, on the drill square and on the battlefield. Values of service, values of honour and integrity and values of togetherness and solidarity.
‘I know our journeys to this point differ but we are always connected through what we learned as humans, what we faced as families and how we’ve come out stronger because of our ability to listen, to understand, to support one another.’
It is not clear whether Harry’s virtual appearance was pre-planned or a change to the schedule, and MailOnline has contacted representatives for the Sussexes for clarification on this point.
Among the celebrities attending the event were Bruce Springsteen and John Mellencamp who performed onstage together, actor Tom Hanks and comedians Jimmy Carr and Tracy Morgan.
Harry’s virtual appearance was revealed after Harry and Meghan were branded ‘eco-hypocrites’ after they flew on a private jet to the Katy Perry gig.
The Duke and Duchess, who have been outspoken on environmental issues in the past, hitched a ride with other celebrities on a plane owned by Texan oil heir Michael Herd from Santa Barbara to Las Vegas.
Jimmy Carr performs onstage during the Stand Up For Heroes event in New York last night
Tom Hanks and members of the Color Guard Formation at Stand Up For Heroes last night
They joined the likes of Cameron Diaz and her husband Benji Madden as well as actress Zoe Saldana on the Gulfstream jet on a 40-minute private flight to watch the final show of Perry’s Vegas residency.
Just hours later the Duke’s brother, Prince William, flew on a commercial British Airways flight to Singapore for the Earthshot Prize awards, which celebrate winners for their contribution to environmentalism.
The move by Harry and Meghan sparked accusations of hypocrisy, with the Duke having previously set up his charity Travalyst to promote sustainable and eco-friendly tourism.
One royal expert has suggested that Harry, who is still a patron of the charity, should ‘get the sack’ for the decision to fly privately.
Angela Levin told The Sun: ‘They think they have gotten so grand, they wouldn’t dream of taking a normal flight.
‘They’ve got all these rich friends to pay for it. It’s worse than ‘do as I say, not as I do’ because he’s a patron of a charity.
‘William was welcomed hugely in Singapore , which must have annoyed Harry and Meghan. This sort of behaviour is exactly why we call them eco-hypocrites.’
Separately today, a spokesperson for Harry and Meghan said the couple have had ‘no contact’ from Buckingham Palace about an invitation to King Charles III’s 75th birthday party next week.
Charles is set to celebrate the milestone with a party at Clarence House with his closest friends and family on Tuesday, November 14.
The Sunday Times reported that Prince Harry had turned down an invitation to the birthday bash, and will stay in California. But a spokesperson for the Sussexes told MailOnline that the couple had no idea about it.
‘There has been no contact regarding an invitation to His Majesty’s upcoming birthday. It is disappointing the Sunday Times has misreported this story,’ they said.
The same spokesperson also denied that Meghan, who found fame on Suits, will be making a return to acting following reports earlier this week.
