Duke of Sussex met with cheers from crowd of fans ahead of charity donation

The Duke of Sussex was greeted with cheers and jokes when he arrived at a charity in Nottingham where he is expected to announce a large personal donation to Children in Need.

Harry waved to the crowd of about 100 local people, including a group of young children, and gave a smile and thumbs-up before he went inside the Community Recording Studio (CRS) in St Ann’s.

The Duke, who arrived in a single black Range Rover at midday on Tuesday, was around 40 minutes late because of traffic in London caused by tube strikes.

Harry no longer has the benefits of his official public duties since he stepped down as a working member of the royal family, including police vehicles to escort him through traffic.

The Duke laughed when a member of the public who came to support him shouted out: “Harry you brought the sunshine with you” on his arrival.

Harry is expected to hold a private briefing with Children in Need, the CRS and community outreach group Epic Partners during the visit.

Inside the building, he clapped for young artist Paige, 24, who performed a song in a recording studio for him.

The duke last visited the CRS to mark World Mental Health Day in October 2019, just two months before he and the Duchess of Sussex announced they were stepping down as senior working royals and moving to North America.

Among the crowd waiting outside the CRS was fan Margaret Wilson, 66, who wore a T-shirt in support of the duke.

Ms Wilson, who said she travelled from Mansfield in Nottinghamshire to catch a “glimpse” of Harry, wore a purple top with a slogan reading: “Team Harry. Lifetime Member. Man. Myth. Legend”.

She said: “I would like him to know at least that I have worn a T-shirt, even if he didn’t see it.

“I’ve followed him for a long time. I was a fan of his mother and I like what he’s doing.

“He’s doing a lot for charity and he’s not even on the payroll. He doesn’t have to do this, he’s choosing to do this.”

Elderly married couple Graham and Patricia, aged 82 and 81, who did not want to give their surname, set up a chair on the pavement outside the building to see the duke.

Graham said: “My wife is a fan, she always has been. She just wanted to come down and see him.

“We’re getting old now, we may never get the chance again. Who knows what’s going to happen in the future?”

The duke is on a rare four-day trip to the UK, carrying out a string of solo charity visits, but is yet to be reunited with his father the King nor encounter his brother the Prince of Wales.

On Monday, Harry marked the third anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s death by privately laying flowers at her grave in St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle, but he remained apart from William, from whom he is estranged, with the prince just seven miles away visiting a WI branch in his grandmother’s honour.

While the duke was in Nottingham, William was carrying out an engagement in Lambeth, south London, at youth organisation Spiral Skills.

Harry, who has told how his father will not speak to him because of his court battle over his security, has not seen the King, who is still undergoing treatment for cancer, face to face for more than 18 months.