Prince Harry once attended Alexandra Palace to watch the darts, and former boss of the PDC, Barry Hearn, made a surprising revelation about the Royal
Prince Harry is known for his love of sports(Image: Max Mumby/Indigo, Getty Images)
Barry Hearn once confessed that he felt “quite sorry” for Prince Harry when the Royal attended a darts match at Alexandra Palace. The Duke of Sussex, 41, is known for his love of sports, with a particular interest in polo, rugby and football.
So it was no shock when the Prince made an appearance at the World Darts Championship in 2014 at Alexandra Palace.
Speaking on The Barry Hearn Show, the ex-chairman of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) revealed that fans started chanting Harry’s name when they spotted him in the crowd, leading to an awkward moment for the Prince.
Hearn was taken aback when Harry mentioned he wasn’t permitted to wave back at fans. he said: “He’d just come out of the army and he’s obviously on a bit of a bender, I think. He brought three mates along. They were great fun.
“And at one stage, the crowd started chanting. The rules were quite strict. We were allowed to put his face on the big screens just three times during the evening, just a flash.”
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“So he was having a proper night out with his mates, having a few pints, enjoying himself. And the crowd started chanting: ‘Harry, Harry, give us a wave’. And he looked at me and I saw a bit of inquisitiveness in his face – as if to say, ‘What do I do?’
“I looked at him and said, ‘If you stand up now and you wave back to these people, your street credibility is assured for life because you’ve identified with the normal man, the people that form the majority of this country’. And he looked at me and said, ‘I don’t think I’m allowed to’… I thought that was quite sad.”
Prince Harry in the crowd at Alexandra Palace(Image: Getty)
In his autobiography, Hearn, 77, revealed that the Prince and his mates consumed “60 pints of lager” that evening before asking the former darts chief and his son, Eddie, to join them for an afterparty.
“They proceeded to consume dozens of pints of lager and merged in with the crowd rather well. Harry was like any ordinary bloke on a night out with his mates,” he wrote.
“Eddie and I joined them on a table of six and it was clear they were on a bender. I reckon 60 pints of lager went down and I didn’t have much of it.”
Barry Hearn discussed meeting Prince Harry(Image: Getty)
He continued: “At the end, Harry said they were off to a nightclub and would we like to come?’Not us,’ I said. ‘You guys are too dangerous.'”
Hearn Sr took over as PDC chairman in 2001, helping to transform the organisation into the sport’s premier governing body. During his stewardship, darts experienced a surge in popularity throughout the UK, triggering an extraordinary financial boom.
In 2021, he relinquished his role as chairman of the Matchroom Sport Group after almost 40 years and handed over responsibilities to his son, Eddie.
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