Prince Harry Shows ‘Irritation’ With 1 Move in Documentary, Body Language Expert Says

Prince Harry‘s body language during one moment of the Netflix documentary Harry & Meghan showed he was visibly irritated, an expert says. When he discussed the media following his family when he was a child, Harry understandably displayed “stress” while recalling the challenging time.

Prince Harry showed signs of stress during Netflix documentary, body language expert says

In the documentary, Prince Harry said, “The paparazzi used to harass us to the point of where we had to be forced into smiling and answering questions to the traveling press pack.”

In a video for The Behavioral Arts YouTube channel, body language expert Spidey explained some of Harry’s revealing gestures as he spoke about his experiences with the press as a child. “This is obviously something that his whole life has irritated him, that he’s had an issue with,” the expert noted.

First, Spidey looked at Harry’s blink rate, calling it “sky high” when compared to other clips of him in the documentary, where his blinking was more “steady.”

“This is an indication of stress,” the expert explained. “Typically when stress spikes, the eyes dry out and a heightened blink rate attempts to correct that.”

There are also some revealing gestures when harry says the word “press pack,” including an eyebrow flash for emphasis as well as a “chin jut.”

“The chin comes out as he almost spits those words, ‘press pack,’ and this is very consistent with aggression, unpleasant emotions towards something,” Spidey explained.

Prince Harry displayed a moment of ‘sassy bobbling,’ expert says

Spidey also noted a “sassy bobbling” movement Harry performed, explaining how his “shoulders [were] popping and his head is bobbling around a little.”

The expert continued, “And this is consistent with irritation. It doesn’t happen very often with him — I’ve seen it in one or two more places where he’s talking about something that irritates him. But typically he’s pretty good at having a calm, steady demeanor.”

Spidey added, “But in this case, he’s definitely leaking unpleasant feelings towards the press. He’s getting worked up over it, the stress is going up — that sassy bobbling, spitting of the words, that chin jut. There’s a lot of unpleasant stuff towards the press from an early age.”

Spidey also pointed out a “very distinct facial expression… as [Harry] talks about the media who drove everyone else away from him.” The expert explained, “He has this crooked, kind of one side of the mouth [going up.]”

He added, “This is unmistakable — this is the facial expression of contempt. Contempt is the only universal emotion that is not symmetrical on the face.”

Body language expert looks at Harry’s look of ‘disappointment’ and ‘disbelief’

Spidey also analyzed Prince Harry’s body language when he said, “I had to do everything I could to protect my family, especially after what happened to my mum. You know, I didn’t want history to repeat itself.” 

Harry’s gesture of shaking his head side to side may appear to signal him saying “no,” but Spidey said this is “one of the most misunderstood gestures in body language.” People often think that the gesture “means they’re lying” and while the expert said it can “indicate inner conflict,” it doesn’t mean “they are being deceptive about what they’re saying.”

Instead, it can show disapproval, disbelief, disappointment, or disagreement, according to the expert. Spidey said Harry may have shown “disappointment in himself,” either about protecting Meghan or his mom, or “disbelief of what happened to his mom” and the way he’s “struggling with the thought of that happening again.”

Showbiz Cheat Sheet acknowledges conditions and cultures can impact body language and is sensitive to all backgrounds.