Prince Harry is ‘more relaxed & confident WITHOUT Meghan’ as duke beams at aviation awards, body language expert claims

PRINCE Harry looked more ‘relaxed and confident than he tends to be with Meghan’, during his recent Aviation Awards appearance, according to a body language expert.

The Prince made no reference to his dad, King Charles, or Kate Middleton's health shock in his aviation hall of fame speech.

The Duke of Sussex accepted the Living Legend of Aviation award at a ceremony hosted by John Travolta in Beverly Hills, California, on Friday.

It is the first time he has been seen in public since Kate Middleton's abdominal surgery and King Charles' enlarged prostate diagnosis.

But according to a body language expert, there was a clear shift in Prince Harry’s emotions during the evening.

Speaking exclusively to Fabulous, Judi James told us: “Harry’s arrival body language as he stepped out of the car created an impression of anxiety and wariness. 

“His eyes turned sideways to the cameras with a hunted or haunted look and his mouth fell open as his shoulders hunched and he leant a hand back to close his own car door.

“Harry gets nervous before making a speech so he  might have been missing the soothing influence of his wife or he might also have been preoccupied with his recent legal dramas.”

However, Judi then noticed: “Once inside the venue though it was a very different, sociable version of the Prince, grinning boyishly for selfies and posing at the start of his speech with an air of cockiness as he made comments from the mic to another living legend, John Travolta.

“On stage Harry appeared more relaxed and confident than he tends to when he is with Meghan, possibly because, despite her often frequent pats and hand-holding of almost maternal encouragement, he might feel intimidated by the knowledge of her experienced and confident speech-making skills.

“Harry seemed to return to his ‘fun Prince’ persona as he gave several power-pats to Travolta to hint at subliminal dominance as they hugged on stage, then leant one elbow on the lectern in a very relaxed way as he waved the other, cracking jokes about being one year old when Travolta danced with his mother.

“If the anxious body language outside the venue was authentic and based on his recent dramas and worries, he seemed to shuck it off once he got into the event, giving signs of completely enjoying himself by the time he got up to collect his award.”

Kate Middleton and King Charles were not present at the event. 

Kate is expected to stay at the private London Clinic for up to 14 days before going home to Adelaide Cottage in Windsor.

And yesterday morning, King Charles was seen for the first time since the Palace revealed he faces prostate treatment in just a few days.

But the Duke of Sussex made no mention of his family's recent hospital visits in his speech. 

Instead, Harry paid a special thanks to John Travolta, who famously danced with his mum Diana, at The White House in 1985.

He said: "I was one years old when you danced with my mum, as you told everybody here and continue to dine out on that probably every single night. But look at us now," Harry said of the iconic moment.

"If we're not going to dance together, we'll fly together."

He went on to thank the "living legends of aviation for this incredible honour" adding that he is "proud to be recognised among such a dynamic and inspiring group of individuals".

Harry claimed: "For me, flying has been a transcendent experience.

";A close encounter with magic, an invitation to both protect freedom… and to feel free; and, funny enough, an opportunity to ground oneself, without actually being grounded.

"I find my flight training — which was over the course of three years— to be one of life’s greatest lessons. In this lesson, it triggered a vast array of feelings!"

Meghan Markle, who had been expected to attend, was also absent.

She was not present as one of their children became unwell, according to PA.

Fabulous will pay for your exclusive stories. Just email: fabulousdigital@the-sun.co.uk and pop EXCLUSIVE in the subject line.