Prince Harry Reveals He Hates Twitter: "I'm Not on Social Media, but I Used to Be"

Royal shared his distaste for social media while speaking with students about the Invictus Games

By Alyssa Toomey Jul 21, 2014 5:28 PMTags
Prince HarryAndrew Cowie - WPA Pool /Getty Images

Prince Harry is a Twitter quitter—and he's totally cool with that title.

The 29-year-old royal spoke with approximately 60 school children on Monday in London, where he revealed his distaste for the social media site due to its invasive nature during an impromptu Q&A for the Invictus Games.

Ironically, Harry made the remarks while speaking with students who are being trained as "digital champions," learning how to use Facebook and Twitter to promote the forthcoming multi-sport event designed for wounded soldiers.

"I would love to get involved and go on social media and if it was for causes like this I really would," Prince William's younger brother said when asked if he will be tweeting for the Paralympic-style games, which will take place in September. "The issue for myself and my family, put quite simply, is that it's very hard for me to tweet about the Invictus Games and tweet about something that means a lot to me, whereas I at the same time really quite hate Twitter by the invasion of privacy."

He added: "I think you all understand what I'm talking about."

In May, the prince sent his first tweet at the Invictus Game launch, posting a message for fans from the event's official Twitter handle.

"Hope everyone will get behind #invictusgames," he wrote. "Great opportunity to support and thank the men and women who have given so much. Harry."

While Harry may be weary of expressing himself in 140 characters or less, the royal also revealed that he "used to be" on social media, although he is not anymore.

Still, despite his aversion to Twitter, Harry encouraged the youngsters to get involved and promote the Games.

"The more noise and the more enthusiasm you guys can get behind the Invictus Games, get your friends involved, buy some tickets, come down and scream and shout - I promise you, you will not regret it, it will be the most amazing weekend of your lives," he said. 

Prince George's uncle also spoke about the significance of the sporting event, noting how it's an opportunity for the public to thank soldiers for their service.

"For me this is an opportunity for the British public to say thank you to these people from across the world for their service. You only hear about the guys who die, you never hear about the injuries," he said. "So to give this opportunity to all these guys who have been injured and managed to survive thanks to the amazing medical care we have nowadays, I think that's a really powerful message to send to everybody."

Meanwhile, Kate Middleton's trip to Malta—which will mark her first solo-trip abroad since marrying Prince William in 2011—was officially announced by Kensington Palace today. According to the palace, the Duchess of Cambridge "will visit Malta on 20th and 21st September 2014 to represent Her Majesty The Queen on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Malta's independence."

Celebrate Prince George's first birthday by tuning into Prince George Turns One! at 8:30 p.m. on Monday on E!