British hair stylist 'Prince Harry' in Birmingham weighs in on royal wedding

Harry Booth says royal wedding will bring people together

BIRMINGHAM, Mich. – Harry Booth has been a hair stylist at Luigi Bruni salon in Birmingham for the past eight years. He's British, and while he wasn't born a prince, that doesn't stop some from affectionately calling him Prince Harry.

Booth said his clients are always asking him about the royal family.

"I walk into the salon and people say, 'Harry, what do you think about Meghan Markle?'" Booth said. "'Harry, what do you think about this?'"

What does Booth think about the American fascination with the royals?

"I think it's something different," Booth said. "You know, there aren't that many kings and queens left anymore. I think there's, like, an aura built up around it. Like, 'Oh, what's their life like?' You know, we just have -- not that the president is bad or anything -- but you know, we have a prime minister. Same thing, and you don't see people lining up wanting to know everything about their lives."

Does he think his parents named him after Prince Harry?

"I think a little," Booth said. "I think at the time in 1993 it was coming back a little. I don't personally have too many friends called Harry. I had a friend called William growing up. So, you know, Harry and William."

Booth took a trip home to visit his family in London, and he said the city has been preparing feverishly for months leading up to this weekend's royal wedding.

"This city is on fire," Booth said. "I mean, they're doing everything. There's flowers all over the streets. Everything's got to be pristine and perfect. I mean, they take it really seriously."

As a hair stylist, Booth has thought about Markle's hair for the wedding.

"First, she's incredibly beautiful," Booth said. "So I think whatever she wears, she is going to be looking absolutely perfect. But I think she might wear her hair half up, half down. It's kind of what I'm thinking. She's got such a beautiful face that she might want to show it off, you know, and not have so much sitting in front of her, and I don't think Harry is going to do too much with his hair."

What are Booth's overall thoughts about the big day?

"To have something happy and amazing to happen like that in the country, I think it brings a lot of people together, and people need that," Booth said. "People need, like, something to gather around. We know people need something to gossip about, but it will be cool to see how everything plays out and how the public will take it and stuff because ... for the first time commoners (will be) going to a royal wedding, which is quite a big thing in England."

Local 4's Tim Pamplin and the Knight Cam have arrived in England to cover the royal wedding. His live coverage begins Thursday morning on Local 4 News Today.

You can visit our full royal wedding special coverage page by clicking here.


About the Authors:

You can watch Kimberly Gill weekdays anchoring Local 4 News at 5 p.m., 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. and streaming live at 10 p.m. on Local 4+. She's an award-winning journalist who finally called Detroit home in 2014. Kim has won Regional Emmy Awards, and was part of the team that won the National Edward R. Murrow Award for Best Newscast in 2022.

Derick is the Lead Digital Editor for ClickOnDetroit and has been with Local 4 News since April 2013. Derick specializes in breaking news, crime and local sports.