Prince Harry lookalike forced to disguise himself in public as he fears for life
A Prince Harry lookalike has been forced to disguise himself in public as he fears for his life after the royal revealed his 'kill count' - enraging the Taliban.
The Duke of Sussex has been slammed for announcing in new memoir Spare that he took the lives of 25 members of the Islamic fundamentalist group during service in Afghanistan.
Harry has “played beautifully into the hands of the Taliban”, according to international security specialist Will Geddes, and has put his family in the firing line for a possible revenge attack.
But the Prince has also put Rhys Whittock at risk with his remarks too.
The 39-year-old been forced to disguise himself after Harry's recent revelations and says he feels like target for terrorists looking for retribution.
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But he says he now lives in fear of a revenge attack (@theprinceharrylookalike / CATERS NEWS)
Harry has enraged the terrorist group with his killing comments (Getty Images)Mr Whittock has worked as a Prince Harry lookalike since 2017 - and has travelled all over the world with his uncanny likeness to the fifth-in-line to the throne.
Now the lookalike has taken to disguising himself when in public after his mum begged him to make sure he isn't mistaken for the Prince.
The man, who is originally from Cardiff, but doesn't want to reveal where in the UK he currently lives, because of the terror threat, said: "I started to feel uneasy when I heard that Harry was talking about his time in the army.
"My mum texted me and it left me with goosebumps. It just said: 'Because of Harry's admission in the army he is now a target. You need to wear glasses in public'.
"People mistake me for Harry every single day so it is a worry when you're the lookalike of someone facing a sudden increase in security threats.
Rhys Whittock's mum has begged him to be careful (@theprinceharrylookalike / CATERS NEWS)
Rhys has now taken to disguising himself when in public (@theprinceharrylookalike / CATERS NEWS)"Experts agree it was a mistake to release this information. He has put himself and family at extra unnecessary risk.
"I think his memoir should have been run past British security first. It's quite bizarre that it never had been, as he will require extra security in future in the UK at the coronation this year for example.
"He will require lots of extra security for some time now. While I do look a lot like him, I'm not surrounded by an entourage when I'm out and about so I would think it should be clear to most people I'm not the real Harry but there are crazy people out there.
"I haven't been offered any security before for jobs that I carry out but I would be very hesitant to do one in the current climate without security for being mistaken as the real Prince Harry.
Harry said disclosing the number of Taliban he killed was in a bid to reduce veteran suicides (Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images)"Normally it's quite nice to run into people who think I'm Harry, but I've made sure I've kept my hat on over the last few days.
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"As you can imagine, I've always been a big fan of Prince Harry, but I think everybody, including me, by the constant private family revelations."
Rhys claims he is still being booked for regular work, including being asked alongside a Meghan Markle lookalike to re-enact parts of their infamous Oprah interview for TV stations around the world.
And he hopes he will still be able to work alongside pals who work as lookalikes for the Prince and Princess of Wales - although he admits they'll probably be posing for 'family at war' photoshoots.
The lookalike fears he will become and even bigger target for terrorists looking for revenge (@theprinceharrylookalike / CATERS NEWS)Rhys added: "I've always really liked Prince Harry but he needs to move forward with his life.
"The problem I see though is the constant, seemingly never-ending drip-feeding speaking out is losing impact with the public with every new detail. We're tired of it and just want something much more positive.
"I am often now asked not to smile as much when I am doing lookalike work - Harry used to always be grinning, but now, people don't believe it's him if I turn up with a smile.
"Many people are concerned for Harry's wellbeing. He strikes me as deeply unhappy, angry, paranoid and isolated. I have to rein-in my smiles at work because Harry doesn't smile nearly as much as he used to.
A leading security expert says his boast that he took the lives of 25 Taliban fighters leaves his family firmly in the firing line (Getty Images)"I think much better surely would have been to vent your grievances all in one go on the Oprah interview and then move forward in life."
Rhys continued: "Last year, when coronavirus restrictions ended, it was the first time we'd get to experience what type of reaction the public would have towards us since the 'Megxit' announcement.
"People's opinion of them seems to be split but I wondered how that would translate to public appearances for us.
"We filmed at various locations around Windsor for a promotional night club video for the Queen's Jubilee celebrations where we interacted a lot with the public, who were all happy to see us.
"When I started this lookalike career, Prince Harry was universally loved and frequently noted as the nation's second favourite royal, behind our much-loved Queen.
"He had a wicked sense of humour, seemed to have a great human touch with people - like his mother Diana - and a very good relationship with not only his brother William, but also with Catherine.
"They always appeared very close at public engagements so it's been very sad to witness these previous close family relationships break down and in a very public fashion."
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