Prince Harry allegedly ended his close friendship with comedian Jack Whitehall when the Duke of Sussex started dating Meghan Markle.
“I’ve come into contact with a couple of [the royals] in the past. I was quite good friends with Harry back in the day. Pre-Meghan, when he was a terror,” Whitehall dished on Monday’s episode of the “Jase & Lauren” podcast.
The “Bad Education” star, 36, was asked if it was true that the Invictus Games founder “dropped his mates” when he met Markle, to which Whitehall said, “Yeah.”
Whitehall noted that he wasn’t present for the infamous night when Harry played strip billiards with showgirls in Las Vegas, but the actor said he “had a few nights out with him.”
“I mean, I wasn’t, I wouldn’t say, part of the inner circle, to go back to a Vegas analogy,” Whitehall said. “But no, I had a few nights out with him when he was quite fun.”
Whitehall made sure to mention that like Harry, he has also “retired” from his wild party days.
“There’s still a demon inside me,” Whitehall joked. “There [is] definitely a little bit more negotiating and [I’ve] cashed out at the bank of mutual resentment. I just sent my wife away for a girls’ weekend — I’m like, ‘Take two nights babe,’ ‘Cause I know there’s a potential boys’ weekend coming up.”
Whitehall and Harry have been spotted hanging out over the years and were even photographed having a joyful interaction at the Royal Variety Performance at London’s Albert Hall in 2015.
The BetterUp chief impact officer, 40, started dating the “Suits” alum, 43, a year later and the couple tied the knot in 2018.
Whitehall wasn’t the only friend to lose touch with Harry after things got serious with the Duchess of Sussex. Sources claimed in 2019 that Harry had “frozen out” several of his pals from his tight-knit circle after becoming Markle’s husband.
Harry reportedly banished his bestie and former Eton schoolmate Tom “Skippy” Inskip — who was present for the naked Vegas pool game — after the banker allegedly advised the red-headed royal not to marry Markle.
The “Spare” author apparently also distanced himself from good friend Astrid Harbord, who ran in Kate Middleton’s circles.
“Like several others who were considered a questionable influence on Harry during his bad old bachelor days, Tom has been dropped, even though he himself now has a lovely wife, Lara,” a source said at the time.
The insider added, “It’s all part of Meghan’s quiet airbrushing out of Harry’s old posse. She doesn’t want temptation — of any sort — being put in his way while they concentrate on starting a family.”
Harry and Markle now have a new star-studded friend group after retiring from their royal duties in 2020 and moving to Montecito, Calif., where they reside in a $14 million estate with their kids: Prince Archie, 5, and Princess Lilibet, 3.
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