HARRY GOES TO HOLLYWOOD
Rock star welcome and his name in lights as he shares stage with J-Lo
SiNCE Prince Philip’s funeral we have seen the Royal Family solemnly carrying on their public duties with dignity.
For Prince harry, however, his first engagement since returning to his California mansion was decidedly hollywood.
Appearing at an A-list Covid charity concert in Los Angeles this weekend, he received the full rock star treatment before an audience of thousands.
tieless in an open-necked shirt with the sleeves rolled up, he strolled on stage in the arena as a camera tracked his every move and the words ‘Prince harry, the Duke of Sussex’ were flashed on to a giant screen behind him.
Also on the starry bill were movie stars Ben Affleck and Selena Gomez, with singer Jennifer Lopez performing in a series of revealing costumes. there were even video messages from President Joe Biden and the Pope.
All that was missing was Meghan, who is due to give birth to the couple’s second child, a daughter, this summer. She is expected to record a message before the event is televised later this month.
harry, 36, was in full sincere motivational speaker mode, with a plea to ‘lift up all of humanity’, telling the audience of vaccinated frontline workers at the SoFi stadium that there should be greater worldwide sharing of vaccines.
‘this pandemic cannot end unless we act collectively with an unprecedented commitment to our shared humanity,’ he said.
‘the vaccine must be distributed to everyone everywhere. We cannot rest or truly recover until there is fair distribution to every corner of the world ... it must be accepted as a basic right for all.’
harry and Meghan, 39, are campaigners for Vax Live, which organised and concert and has urged governments to pledge £14billion for Covid jabs for poorer countries.
the duke warned: ‘None of us should be comfortable thinking that we could be fine when so many others are suffering. in reality, and especially with this pandemic, when any suffer, we all suffer. We must look beyond ourselves with empathy and compassion for those we know, and those we don’t. We need to lift up all of humanity and make sure that no person or community is left behind.’
harry, who was recently appointed as a ‘commissioner on disinformation’ with a Left-wing think-tank examining so-called fake news, said attempts to tackle the pandemic faced a threat from ‘vaccine misinformation’.
Organisers said the Vax Live concert raised almost £40million for Covax, which distributes vaccines to poorer countries.
Despite the sombre nature of some of the proceedings, Miss Lopez kept the glamour coming with her costume changes.
the singer, 51, first dazzled in a nude embellished Zuhair Murad jumpsuit, then returned to the stage wearing fishnet tights, black knee-high boots and a yellow mini dress. For her third performance she wore a multicoloured bodysuit teamed with a black belt.
‘Lift up all of humanity’