‘Prince Harry told me what he’s not allowed to do – it was quite sad’ | Other | Sport

Legendary sports promoter Barry Hearn once claimed he felt “quite sorry” for Prince Harry after the British Royal attended the darts at Alexandra Palace. The Duke of Sussex, 41, has always been a keen sports fan, having taken a keen interest in polo, rugby and football.

It wasn’t a surprise then to see the Prince show up at Alexandra Palace for the World Darts Championship in 2014. Speaking on The Barry Hearn Show, the former chairman of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) claimed fans began chanting Harry’s name when they spotted him in the crowd, which then sparked an awkward response from the Prince. Hearn was surprised when Harry said he wasn’t allowed to wave back at fans.

“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,” Hearn said

“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.

“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 said.”

Writing in his autobiography, Hearn, 77, said that the Prince and his friends drank “60 pints of lager” that night before inviting the former darts boss and his son, Eddie, out 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.”

Continuing, he said: “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 became chairman of the PDC in 2001. He helped transform the organisation into the sport’s leading governing body. Under his leadership, darts spiked in popularity across the UK, leading to an unprecedented financial boom.

In 2021, he stepped down as chairman of the Matchroom Sport Group after nearly 40 years and passed the torch to his son, Eddie.