Royal fans have been left unconvinced by a Prince Harry impersonator claiming he’s set to cash in on the Duke’s Oprah Winfrey interview with a surge in bookings.
Harry Poulson, 24, from Cornwall, said he is often stopped in the street by strangers mistaking him for the Duke of Sussex, 36, and has raked in almost £5,000 since the royal wedding in 2018 by working as a lookalike.
The boat builder explained while work has died down after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle‘s, 39, move to the US last year, interest has peaked again after their interview last week.
Harry revealed: ‘The work should start coming back in now because the level of work usually depends on how much they’re in the spotlight whether it’s positive or negative and they’ve been in the spotlight massively recently so I think there’ll be a fair amount of interest.’
However social media users have been left unconvinced, with one commenting: ‘I see several people that look more like Prince Harry on my daily walk than that impersonator.’
Prince Harry impersonator Harry Poulson, 24, from Cornwall, has revealed his plans to cash in on the Sussexes’ explosive Oprah Winfrey (pictured, with a Meghan Markle lookalike)
The 24-year-old boat builder charges £200 for a club appearance and has managed to make £5,000 from his likeness to the royal
Another wrote: ‘I’d want my money back if he turned up claiming to be a Prince Harry lookalike.’
A third commented: ‘The only thing worse than getting a Prince Harry impersonator would be getting a Prince Harry impersonator and it being this guy.’
Harry claimed he first noticed the resemblance aged 21 when colleagues pointed out the likeness and a local newspaper stirred up some excitement in the town by publishing a photo of ‘Prince Harry’ at a local beach.
He said: ‘Everyone I worked with used to say how much I looked like him and would make a joke of it.
Harry revealed interest has plummeted since Harry and Meghan’s move to the US last year and he hasn’t worked as an impersonator since September
‘I have people approaching me in the street when I’m in town, they’ll do a double take, and they say how much I look like Prince Harry.’
‘I’ve done a few staged interviews in front of Buckingham Palace, a few openings and I’ve worked as an extra on films who needed a Prince Harry lookalike and I’ve always got a good reaction.
‘When I worked in a local pub, people would write on social media that they had either been served by Prince Harry or they’d seen him getting absolutely drunk at the other side of the bar.’
Harry charged £200 for appearances at nightclubs, student unions and work as an extra in films but hasn’t being invited to an event since September.
Social media users were unconvinced by the similarities between Harry and the Duke of Sussex, with some saying they would ‘want their money back’ if the lookalike turned up claiming to be the royal
He revealed interest has plummeted since Harry and Meghan’s move to the US last year, explaining: ‘The work has quietened down since they moved to LA and I haven’t done a job since September which could be because they are in the spotlight for a different reason.
‘Luckily, it isn’t my main job, it was just ad hoc work and I’ve been able to keep working through lockdown as a carpenter.
‘Thankfully, no one I know has changed their opinion of him since he moved and he’s still well liked.
‘Being a Prince Harry impersonator has always been a good laugh as far as jobs go so I’m looking forward to getting back into it.’
The lookalike said he hopes his work as a Prince Harry impersonator will be rejuvenated by the Oprah Winfrey interview (pictured, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex with Oprah)
Harry, who shares the Duke’s colouring, red hair and ginger beard, said he first noticed the resemblance to the royal at the age of 21
Despite the knock to his side job, Harry backs the pair’s move and sympathises with them since they made their dramatic decision to step back the Royal Family last year.
Harry said: ‘I think they’ve definitely got a right to complain about the invasion of privacy.
‘It’s just hard because they want to be out of the spotlight but are in the spotlight. Then again, they want to have their say.
‘I think we’re similar personality wise as well. He seems sound, really laid back and down to earth.
‘There are definitely worse people I could be mistaken for because he’s so loved.’
Harry, who also shares his name with the royal, said being a Prince Harry impersonator had always been ‘a laugh’