Isn’t it great that in the middle of a depressing, slushy January in London, Prince Harry is back town, and apparently keen to spread a little sunlight into our days with a stunning return to form where his nightlife habits are concerned?
“I have always said work hard, play hard,” said Prince Harry in his BBC interview filmed in Afghanistan, and, after 20 weeks without alcohol flying Apache’s on the front line, the prince was apparently keen to put his maxim into action.
Indeed, for veteran Harry-watchers the only surprise was that it took three whole days before he was spotted out on the town with the red paint. For although Harry had said that what he was really looking forward to was some quiet time hanging out with his brother and Kate, few were entirely shocked that Saturday night found him at a house party in Fulham, London, which he didn’t leave until 10:00am on Sunday morning.
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Yes, 10am. You go, Hazza.
Here’s the timeline: The 28-year-old arrived back in the UK on Wednesday and was spotted on Saturday afternoon at a pub in Fulham, the Brown Cow, much beloved by the rich young London crowd that calls Fulham home, particularly old Etonians like Harry. A ‘Brown Cow’ is the slang name within the school of a particularly disgusting drink served at Eton College’s tuck shop, made from Coke and ice cream.
At 9pm, Harry left the pub and was then spotted at Sainsbury’s supermarket in Fulham Broadway, where an excited shopper tweeted news of the sighting.
Lauren Cuthbertson, on the site under the handle @LondonBallerina, messaged: “I was exiting Sainsbury’s in Fulham Broadway & casually bumped into Prince Harry. I’m sure there was a spark.”
The young royal then went to a mate’s house around the corner to carry on the party, which became increasingly noisy, while his royal protection officers waited patiently in a black Range rover outside.
And waited.
And waited.
And waited some more.
Harry finally emerged at 10am, wearing a check shirt witht he sleeves rolled up, jeans and a baseball hat. He was it must be said looking a little dishevelled, but as we all know an Afghan tan does wonders for that morning-after pallor. He hopped into the Range Rover and was swiftly driven home to Kensington Palace by his long-suffering royal protection officers.
Other guests at the party in Fulham were drawn from Harry’s close friends – nicknamed the “circle of trust” - including Tom van Straubenzee and TV presenter Natalie Pinkham.
Say what you like – and who really could begrudge the patron saint of partying a big night out after four months in the desert without so much as a sniff of a barmaid’s apron - it’s better than celebrating with a couple of chicks you just met in the casino downstairs.
The Party Prince is most definitely back, and keen to pick up right where he left off.
The good news for Harry fans is – he’s got four weeks off.
We say, party on Your Royal Highness.
