Prince Harry made headlines all across the globe earlier this month with the release of Spare, which contained numerous unknown details about his life as a royal including which royal he feels closest to.
On Friday, the Duke of Sussex was pictured alongside childhood best friend, Nicky Scott, as the pair spent several hours at Ganna Walska Lotusland, a botanical garden that has been named one of the ten best gardens in the world. Harry was seen carrying three books and a flask while Nicky carried a flask with him.
The pair were both dressed for the winter climate with Harry wearing a blue puffer jacket and grey trousers alongside a hat. Nicky styled out a grey jacket and jeans, and also had a pair of sunglasses on top of his head.
Nicky first met Harry when they were 13, and during the Harry and Meghan Markle’s Netflix docuseries, Harry & Meghan, he revealed how he and the Prince would speak to one another after lights out. He went on to become the CEO and co-founder of the environmental organization, Pollinum. The company aims to help regenerate forest ecosystems using “traditional forest gardening techniques” that also protect existing habitats.
Reflecting on their childhood friendship, Nicky added: “I think, as a young kid, you don’t have the language to necessarily have that complicated mental health chats beyond ‘how are you’ [and] ‘fine’. “And maybe as well you probably veer away from having that discussion because it’s such an emotional hot potato.”
He added: “Like, you don’t know the right things to say, are you gonna make it worse rather than make it better and if you say nothing, you know you’re not at least making it worse.” Recalling the Royal Family’s agreement with the media, which stipulated that both Prince William and Prince Harry would be left alone while attending school, Nicky opened up about the moment they realized it was never going to happen.
“Day one, we’d left the house to a scrum. Nothing I’ve ever seen of flashing lights and the media all there,” he said.