Much like his nephew, Prince Louis, in recent years, Prince Harry was known for his cheeky antics as a child. The royal’s childhood was largely spent at Kensington Palace, with his young years seemingly quite restricted due to his role as a royal.
Speaking of Harry’s childhood in London, former police protection officer Ken Wharfe recalls how Harry previously took it upon himself to escape from Kensington Palace. Ken, formerly with SO14, revealed how the royal – who celebrates hs 41st birthday today – would often come to him in combat gear – eagerly looking for assignments.
He narrated an occasion when he handed Harry a walkie-talkie and assigned him a task.
Without alerting anyone, Harry then escaped out from Kensington Palace to Kensington High Street.
After completing his self-assigned mission, Harry radioed Wharfe a two-word report. Over the walkie-talkie, he eagerly told him, “mission accomplished.”
As reported by MyLondon, Mr Wharfe then recalls the panic after learning that Harry had escaped, admitting that his feet “didn’t touch the ground” upon discovering the royal’s location.
While it is not known how Princess Diana reacted to Harry’s escaping act at the time, Harry once revealed that his late mother used to encourage him to embrace his naughty side.
Harry previously discussed his late mother’s encouragement in the 2017 documentary, ‘Diana, Our Mother: Her Life and Legacy’, which commemorated the 20th anniversary of her death in a Paris car crash in 1997.
Harry said: “Our mother was a total kid, through and through…One of her mottos to me was ‘you can be as naughty as you want, just don’t get caught.’”
Royal author Robert Jobson discussed how Diana saw Harry’s cheeky antics, saying “Their mother, however, seemed to think much of Harry’s behavior was hilarious.”