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Prince Harry's Public Behavior Yesterday Shows Exactly What Kind of Dad He Is to Archie and Lilibet

The prince was in full-on dad mode

prince harry in vancouver
Ethan Cairns/Getty Images

When it comes to insight about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's two kids, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, I'll take what I can get. The royal pair are notoriously protective and private when it comes to their children, though the prince did make a rare mention of his five-year-old and three-year old during a rousing U.K. speech last month. And Markle did speak out about Archie during her tour of Colombia earlier this year.

But now, at Prince Harry's latest outing in Vancouver, Canada, his parenting skills were front and center. And if his behavior with the students at the event is any indication of how he is with Archie and Lili, the man may just be in the running for Father of the Year.

prince harry
Ethan Cairns/Getty Images

Yesterday, Prince Harry, 40, made a surprise appearance at Seaforth Armoury in Vancouver. The occasion? The Invictus Games 2025 School Program Launch Event. For those who don't know, Harry's Invictus Games, which are an international sporting event for wounded and injured veterans that the prince co-founded, will take place next year in Vancouver and Whistler. In advance of the main event, the prince met with students to launch a new online program that will introduce the Invictus Games to schools.

Throughout the visit, Harry was all smiles as he sat and chatted with a number of elementary school students as they participated in activities. His body language made it clear that he was extremely interested in what the children had to say, as he was photographed leaning in, making direct eye contact and even using his go-to parenting move.

It likely comes as no surprise to royal fans that Prince Harry is good with kids. He's attended a number of past events with children and he always seems fully in his element. (No doubt the kids make him think of Archie and Lilibet back home.)

In late September, Prince Harry gave a powerful speech where he opened up about becoming a dad for the second time. While attending a private engagement with The HALO Trust—a humanitarian organization that works to clear landmines and debris from conflict zones—he made a statement about his mother's history with the organization and even mentioned how fatherhood has inspired his advocacy: "Much has changed in my life and the world since 2019 when I first visited [Angola]. In those five years, I've become a father for the second time. And while you don't need children to have a stake in the future of our planet, I do know that my mother would have been horrified that anyone's children or grandchildren would live in a world still infested with mines."

Now I know Harry is private and all, but I wouldn't mind a recent photo of the kids (or at least another glimpse of him in his "Girl Dad" T-shirt)...

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