Prince Harry made a solo appearance at the Santa Barbara One805Live! annual charity event for first responders organised by Hollywood actor Kevin Costner – and a body language expert believes despite being without Meghan Markle, he looked like a Hollywood star

Prince Harry showed he was “in his element” as he took to the stage solo at a charity event where Meghan Markle was noticeably absent, according to an expert.

The Duke of Sussex made an appearance at Santa Barbara One805Live!, which is organised by Hollywood actor Kevin Costner and celebrates the heroic actions of first responders. During his time at the awards, Harry presented an award to a fellow helicopter pilot and rubbed shoulders with some of the other stars attending.

Both he and Meghan attended last year’s event and many had hoped the Duchess would accompany her husband to this year’s awards – but she was reportedly sick and was unable to attend.

But despite being there on his own, body language expert Judi James believes Harry revelled in the limelight. She told the Mirror : “Harry’s body language here suggests that he is totally in his element and delighted to be soaking up or even surfing the on-stage adulation from the A-list audience like a star of the show.

“His open jacket; his gleefully beaming smile at the audience, and that cheeky, knowing, thumbs-up gesture all suggest he is in full show-boating mode here, like some of his ‘rock star’ style appearances on stage when he first arrived in the US.

Harry attended the event without Meghan ( 
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Getty Images)
“While the two award recipients stand together looking tentative, Harry is in full splay mode, stretching an arm out to grab one man on the shoulder in a very informal display of recognition. His hand mic, that signal of who is in charge, is held high to his face, which is turned upward and away, with his head tilted and his chest puffed to suggest a moment of complete confidence during this solo outing.

“In 2023, Harry and Meghan were seen at this event in a series of awkward-looking poses from Harry and a tricky microphone moment from Meghan, but this year his status and level of involvement looks clearer and his mic management far more adept.”

Harry’s appearance at the awards came just hours before he jetted to New York, where last night, he had a run-in with royalty – but again Meghan was noticeably absent. Harry has embarked on a solo trip to the Big Apple, where he is due to speak at several high-profile events that coincide with the United Nations General Assembly. On arriving in the city, he last night joined a dinner hosted by the World Health Organisation.

Harry was on hand to present one of the awards ( 
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Getty Images)
There Harry was seen rubbing shoulders with the likes of Queen Mathilde of Belgium and the Hollywood actor Forest Whitaker at the event to honour survivors of childhood violence.

During Harry’s stay in New York this week, he is set to appear at several major events. Later today, he will be at a summit organised by the Concordia organisation to talk about the Diana Award, named after his late mother Princess Diana, which honours young leaders.

Meanwhile tomorrow, he will appear at the 2024 Clinton Global Initiative annual meeting. The Foundation was founded by former US president Bill Clinton and supported by his wife former US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton and their daughter Chelsea, with the theme of this year’s gathering of political, business and philanthropic leaders called “What’s Working”.

During his appearance at the meeting, Harry plans to discuss the launch of The Archewell Foundation Parents’ Network, an initiative supporting parents whose children have suffered or died due to online harm. He will also address his nonprofit’s collaboration with the World Health Organization and others to end violence against children, an issue he and his wife Meghan outlined on their recent trip to Colombia.