Britain's Prince Harry joked about never being scrutinised in a stand up “debut” act at a comedy event for veterans in New York.
Harry delivered his monologue in a video at the star-studded 17th annual Stand Up For Heroes event, held at the Lincoln Centre on Monday.
The video was circulated online earlier on Tuesday, a day which also saw Britain's King Charles give his first State Opening as the monarch.
Harry delivered a flurry of jokes throughout his monologue, including about the lack of representation for gingers, but spoke more seriously about the “hugely important” military community.
He said: “As someone who never gets scrutinised, I haven’t even had to prepare much, but out of an abundance of caution I have been working on this particular act for quite some time and everyone I know tells me it’s perfect.
“And no, these aren’t people who just tell me what I want to hear. Oh, no. These are people like my finance manager, my lawyer and, of course, my Reiki healer.”
He added: “Our military community is special. It’s one that shares incredible highs and painful lows. It is unique and it is hugely important to society, both during active service and after.
“Our community is valued more than you’ll ever know and nights like this are testament to that.”
Harry wore four military medals and a poppy on his suit jacket in the video message to the event, which was created in 2007 by the Bob Woodruff Foundation and New York Comedy Festival as, according to the foundation’s website, “a tribute to wounded, ill and injured veterans and their loved ones”.
In a clip posted by Hello! magazine, Harry joked he decided to debut his stand up act due to “the shockingly low representation of gingers last year”.
He said: “Obviously I was deeply honoured when Bob asked me to debut my stand up act with you all tonight.
“I was so relieved to be invited back, but then I started to question whether his invite for me to actually do stand up was in fact his idea of a joke.
“Either way, due to the shockingly low representation of gingers last year and out of respect for my fellow endangered species, here I am, reporting for duty.”
Comedians Jimmy Carr and Jon Stewart were among other performers at Stand Up For Heroes on Monday.
Harry is well known to be passionate about the cause.
He is patron of the Invictus Games – a sporting tournament for injured servicemen and women from around the world – which he sees as an important way to support the wellbeing of those who have served their country, “through a combination of ongoing care, training and employment opportunities”, the charity’s website says.
