The Duke of Sussex has been seen for the first time in public since returning to the UK when he arrived at the inaugural Invictus Spirit Awards in London.
He attended the ceremony at the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich, south-east London, cheerily waving to fans as he arrived.
Dressed in black tie and wearing his military medals, Harry posed for photographs in front of the press and then for selfies with wounded veterans.
At a champagne reception in an adjoining courtyard, He told guests he was “incredibly excited” to meet the winners and nominees after being part of the judging panel, alongside the Duchess of Sussex, for the awards.
The ceremony aims to honour the remarkable feats of extraordinary people and organisations at the heart of the global Invictus community.
A host of famous faces including comedian James Corden, who opened the evening, chart topping singer Jess Glynn, who gave a headline performance and actor Ross Kemp were also in attendance.
After welcoming Harry with a hug, Sonique, who is DJing at the bash, said: “It’s nice to have him home. He used to come to my gigs, I have missed him.”
On spotting former England rugby union star James Haskell, Harry walked over and gave him a bear hug telling him “great to see you again”.
The pair posed for pictures at a specially erected photo booth before the duke was taken into the awards.
The evening will recognise those who have beaten the odds, supported others in their recovery, advanced sport and rehabilitation, or made an outstanding contribution to the wider Invictus Community.
The award categories recognise resilience, community, commitment to international sports recovery and philanthropic support.
Harry’s first public engagement since moving back to the UK from the US came on Thursday evening, after a war of words broke out between his father the King and Earl Charles Spencer, the brother of his late mother, Diana, Princess of Wales.
It comes after explosive claims from a new memoir by Earl Spencer were published, in which the King is said to have told Diana’s brother at the time of her death in 1997 that “rest assured, we’ll forget her soon enough”.
A palace spokesman said: “While we do not comment on books as a matter of principle, His Majesty is mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and colour memory in ways others do not recognise, even many years after such a loss.”
Meanwhile, this week it was revealed that Harry and Meghan moved their children to a new school after talks with their security team.
Prince Archie, seven, and five-year-old Princess Lilibet had only just started at their new school in England after the family relocated from the US three weeks ago.
But they will now join another one, after heavy traffic and the lengthy journey to the school reportedly put the Sussexes’ security team under strain, Hello! magazine reported.
The decision comes amid reports that both the Sussexes will receive an official risk assessment following their return.
In January 2020, Harry and Meghan had announced they intended to step back as “senior” members of the royal family, become financially independent, still support Queen Elizabeth II, but split their time between the UK and North America.
But the late Queen ruled at the Sandringham Summit, which was convened to resolve the Megxit crisis, that the couple could not be half in and half out – and the King recently said the agreement still stands.
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