PRINCE Harry gave a touching tribute to his late grandmother the Queen at the WellChild Awards tonight – nearly one year to the day after she passed away.
A body language expert said that the Duke of Sussex revealed his emotions during his speech as he said he knew his grandmother was “looking down on us”.
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Judi told Fabulous: “His mention of his grandmother came after a telling pause.
“Sucking in a heavy breath he licked his lips to signal suppressed emotions, telling the audience ‘As you know my grandmother passed away a year ago.’
“His small tongue-pokes and lip-licking hinted he was struggling with his emotions when he told the audience ‘She’s looking down on us, happy we’re together,’
“He looked determined to move the mood though, narrowing his eyes and tilting his head to suggest affectionate memories of her sense of humour as he added ‘As you also probably know she would have insisted on me coming here instead of seeing her’.”
Although Prince Harry displayed understandable signs of “sadness”, Judi said he “really came alive when the children were brought back on stage though, grinning and bending to chat to them and finally looking more in his element.”
The Duke of Sussex, 38, jetted into London for the WellChild awards solo – revealing his wife Meghan was “very upset” not to be with him.
He also spoke about the “joys and challenges” of being a father to Archie, four, and Lilibet, two.
Prince Harry said: “As a father of two and three dogs, so basically five souls, I am acutely aware of the many joys and challenges that come with parenting.
“And that’s with kids who aren’t facing health challenges.
“So to the parent carers in this room, you have my sincerest admiration and respect.
“The level of support and responsibility you share daily is unrivalled and without fail.
“You deserve all the assistance you need.”
He reportedly has no plans to see the rest of his family while in the UK.
Harry has been a patron of the non-profit WellChild charity for 15 years and is expected to spend time with the charity’s winners and their families.
But the prince is not expected to spend any time with his own family with a palace insider claiming his dad Charles has “no time in the diary” to see his son.
His Majesty is currently enjoying a private break up in the Scottish Highlands, with Charles seen today driving near Balmoral.
Meanwhile, earlier today Prince William visited Pret A Manger in Bournemouth as part of his five-year Homewards project to end homelessness.
And it also seems unlikely that Harry and his brother will be reuniting anytime soon, according to the same source.
Prince William is not thought to have been in touch with the Duke of Sussex for months and today visited Bournemouth – 100 miles away – on Royal duties.
It is not believed he nor wife Princess Kate will see Harry while he is in the UK either.
Harry’s visit to the UK coincides with the anniversary of the Queen’s death a year ago tomorrow – with Her Majesty dying “peacefully” on September 8 last year.
King Charles and Queen Camilla are expected to mark the poignant anniversary at Balmoral surrounded by family.
Harry is not expected to travel to Scotland for the quiet family gathering.
After the awards ceremony tonight, Harry will travel to Dusseldorf for the Invictus Games.
The visit is the first time Harry has returned to the UK since his father King Charles’s coronation – but Meghan is not expected to join him on the UK trip.
Her role at the Invictus Games has also been cast into doubt as she was allegedly deleted from the schedule.
Harry is not expected to have brought his children, Archie and Lilibet for the London trip.
Meanwhile, Prince Harry was this week pictured with Meghan on the first night of Beyonce’s tour.
But pictures showed the former Royal looking particularly glum in their private box, while his wife looked in high spirits.
Harry has also been seen at events by himself – with the dad-of-two was brimming with excitement as he watched Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami win at Los Angeles FC.
Harry was described as a “giddy schoolboy” as he watched a Messi masterclass, despite Meghan not being by his side.
It comes a week after Harry’s first solo Netflix show failed to make the top ten.
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