Specsavers roast Prince Harry ‘lookalike’ who says he's now scared of the Taliban

Prince Harry’s memoir Spare sparked concern from military officials and politicians alike when the duke revealed he killed 25 Afghan fighters while serving in the army, but now it seems even a “lookalike” is unhappy.

The hugely popular autobiography became the fastest-selling non-fiction book ever when it was released last week, amid explosive revelations about a frostbitten penis, cocaine consumption and an alleged altercation with Prince William.

He also described the fighters he killed in Afghanistan as “chess pieces” which had been taken off the board as opposed to “people”, adding they had been “eliminated before they could kill good people”.

“My number is 25. It’s not a number that fills me with satisfaction, but nor does it embarrass me,” he wrote.

Tory MP and army reservist Tobias Ellwood said the remarks were “ill-advised”, retired British Army colonel Tim Collins said he had “turned against the other family” in his life, and Taliban officials called for the duke to stand trial.

Now, 39-year-old “lookalike” Rhys Whittock has revealed he “started to feel uneasy” when he learned “Harry was talking about his time in the army”.

Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter

In an interview with the Daily Mail, Rhys disclosed he was originally from Cardiff, but not where he is based currently. He also said he received a text from his mum warning him about the potential impact of Harry’s comments.

“Because of Harry’s admission in the army he is now a target. You need to wear glasses in public,” it read.

Rhys also shared how he has had to “keep my hat on over the last few days” amid increased chatter about the royal.

“While I do look a lot like him, I'm not surrounded by an entourage when I'm out and about so I would think it should be clear to most people I'm not the real Harry but there are crazy people out there,” he added.

Yet when the story began circulating on social media, many questioned the extent to which Rhys could be considered a Harry “lookalike”.

“Maybe from afar, squinting, and driving past him really fast,” suggested one Twitter user.

Another commented: “Siri, define ‘wishful thinking’.”

“Tell me you’re desperate for attention without telling me you’re desperate for attention,” replied a third, while a fourth responded with “I think he’s safe”.

Yet arguably the most devastating response came from the opticians Specsavers, who simply wrote: “We’re open tomorrow.”

The brand was soon praised for its “brilliant” and “on the ball” reply, which we think is a sight to behold (sorry).

Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.