Prince Harry Debuts Black and White 2015 Christmas Card Alongside Battle of Britain Veteran Pilot

British royal unveils annual holiday photo with mystery man

By Samantha Schnurr Dec 22, 2015 1:07 PMTags
Prince Harry, Tom Neil, Christmas CardPress Association via AP Images

With less than three days until Christmas, Prince Harry finally debuted this year's Christmas card—and it was certainly worth the wait. 

The 31-year-old British royal shared a heartwarming memory from his year, memorialized in a candid black and white photograph.

"Merry Christmas from Prince Harry! Here's his Christmas card photo showing one of his favourite moments from 2015" the Kensington Palace teased in a tweet

While it's practically impossible not to notice Harry's unforgettable face, the man seated next to him is far less familiar. Still, the mystery gentleman hits close to home for Harry, who formerly served as a lieutenant in the British army. 

The man is Tom Neil, a 95-year-old Battle of Britain veteran. The two met in September during Harry's appearance at the 75th anniversary commemoration of the battle victory on his 31st birthday.

Although Prince Harry had planned to take to the clouds for a flypast that day alongside veterans and wounded servicemen, because of poor weather conditions, he elected to forfeit his seat to Neil, who is the last living Royal Air Force ace. 

The Prince said that he considered it a great honor to meet Neil and described it as one of his most memorable moments of 2015.

From this looks of this photograph, it may be one of ours as well.