‘Cheeky’ Prince Harry’s daring escape from palace prompted frantic search
Prince Harry was known for his mischievous antics as a youngster, but one of his most daring escapades saw him flee Kensington Palace without telling anyone
Much like his nephew Prince Louis, Prince Harry’s childhood was filled with cheeky moments, from poking his tongue out at journalists to playfully silencing his cousin on the Buckingham Palace balcony. Raised amidst the grandeur of Kensington Palace and Highgrove House in Gloucestershire, the young prince had a wealth of spaces for his escapades, leading to some side-splitting anecdotes.
One particularly memorable incident involved Harry making a break for it from Kensington Palace all the way to Kensington High Street before being scooped up. This bold adventure was recounted by Ken Wharfe, the family’s ex-protection officer.
Wharfe, formerly with SO14, revealed how Harry would often come to him in combat gear, eager for assignments. He narrated an occasion when he handed Harry a walkie-talkie and assigned him a task, which the prince took very seriously, as any intrepid child might.
Harry, without alerting anyone, decided to bolt from Kensington Palace to Kensington High Street. After completing his self-assigned mission, he radioed Wharfe to report “mission accomplished.”
Wharfe reminisced about the panic that set in as he dashed to retrieve the adventurous prince, admitting his feet “didn’t touch the ground” upon discovering Harry’s location.
Prince William also gave an insight into the lighter moments of his childhood when he shared an endearing and amusing recollection of his mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, highlighting her mischievous sense of humour.
In an interview commemorating the 20th anniversary of Princess Diana’s death, William shared a heartwarming anecdote: “Just outside this room where we are now, she organised, when I came home from school to have Cindy Crawford, Christy Turlington and Naomi Campbell waiting at the top of the stairs.”
He recalled his teenage awe at having life-sized visions of his idols come true, admitting: “I was probably a 12 or 13-year-old boy who had posters of them on his wall.”
