Prince Harry cut a very non-VIP look at an NBA basketball game at the weekend, rows and rows back in the crowd. Is US stardom waning?
Where's Wally? Prince Harry Edition
Looking for Prince Harry way back in the crowd at Saturday's NBA Finals in Texas was a bit like a 'Spare' version of the puzzle book 'Where's Wally?' Just like Paris Fashion Week, there's a hierarchy at US basketball games where Hollywood A-listers, pop stars and sporting legends compete for the coveted courtside seats known as 'Celebrity Row'.
At game five of the finals between the San Antonio Spurs and the New York Knicks, the front row was like a who's who of cool - Dune star Timothee Chalamet, glamorous actress Sydney Sweeney, comedians Ben Stiller and Tracy Morgan, as well as film director Spike Lee were among those in row one. And Prince Harry? He was seven rows back in eight. Ouch!
The 41-year-old - without wife Meghan or their children - attended the match with US Army veteran and Purple Heart recipient JP Lane and sat beside NBA Commissioner Adam Silver.
Three Possible Reasons for Row Eight
There are three possible reasons for being in row eight.
One, as an ex-squaddie Harry was invited by Lane and Silver and that just happens to be Silver's row, so he had no choice but join him there.
Two, Harry asked to be sat way back because he wanted to blend in, not steal the limelight and just hang with his two friends.
Or three - and this is the awkward one - Harry actually wanted front row or near the court seats but wasn't deemed famous or cool enough.
He used to be. When Harry and Meghan first started their US adventure and were on Netflix every five minutes ripping into the Royal Family or gracing late night chat shows, they were always sat in the front row at basketball matches.
But a lot has changed since then. The Sussexes huge £75m Netflix deal has not been renewed and the streaming giant has also pulled away from supporting Meghan's 'As Ever' online range of expensive jams, scented candles, flower petals and tea leaves. There have even been rumours the couple could move - maybe to Australia or back to the UK - as money-making opportunities are drying up quicker than a Surrey reservoir in July.
If Harry was sat there because he wanted to, more power to his royal elbow. If he was sat there because that's the best he could get, then the writing may be on the wall - or more appropriately, on the Wally.
