Last updated at 5:34 PM on 5th February 2012
Prince Harry sports his injury days after survival course
Prince Harry has sustained a 'nasty' gash on the bridge of his nose while on a brutal RAF hostage survival course.
The 27-year-old sported the injury on a night out with David Beckham on Friday.
The Prince was hooded and forced to the ground as part of the gruelling training, which was designed to prepare him for possible capture and torture by the enemy in a war zone.
He also had to live in the wild with no tent as part of the tough SERE course – meaning Survive, Evade, Resist, Extract – ahead of his return to the front line.
Last night aides at St James's Palace dismissed the cut as 'just a scratch' and would not disclose how the Prince suffered the injury.
But Harry, who is due to qualify as a 'limited combat ready' Apache helicopter pilot imminently, has just completed the two-week course at RAF St Mawgan near Newquay in Cornwall,
One onlooker who saw Harry said: 'It looked quite nasty and it was the first thing I noticed
'It looked as though he'd suffered a bad knock. He hadn't made any effort to cover it up or disguise it.
'It seemed like it was quite a few days old because it had scabbed over and was beginning to heal, but it looked very nasty and really rather painful.'
David Beckham and Katherine Jenkins were also seen at the party
However, the Ministry of Defence said that there was no log of Harry sustaining a facial injury on the course.
The mystery injury did not stop the Prince celebrating the end of his training in typical style.
He started his Friday night out with a meal with the former England captain and his friend Thomas van Straubenzee at the fashionable Markham Inn in Chelsea. He then made his way to the Royal Albert Hall to watch the Cirque du Soleil's Totem show while Beckham met up with friends in the West End.
Princess Eugine was also spotted out with her cousin
'Harry and Tom had so much fun with Beckham that they agreed to meet up later that night,' a source at the Markham Inn said. 'They were getting along like really old friends. Harry had made plans to see Cirque du Soleil but he and David agreed to hook up later that night at the Arts Club.'
The pair reunited at the Mayfair club shortly after 10pm where they partied with Prince Harry's cousin Princess Eugenie and Welsh mezzo-soprano Katherine Jenkins until 3am.
'They were clearly having a lot of fun and there was a major dance-off happening down in the club,' said a source. 'Harry seemed to be letting his hair down and having a few drinks.
'He was definitely celebrating, but he was in no way drunk or out of it, he was just having a lot of fun.'
Prince Harry forged a bond with Beckham after his brother struck up a close friendship with the footballer during the World Cup bid. The Beckhams were invited to the Royal Wedding last April.
It is not the first time the pair have partied at the Arts Club, as they enjoyed a night out there shortly before Christmas, when Prince Harry sported a Father Christmas hat.
Another pathetic story of derring do do
- shepster, Plymouth England, 05/2/2012 10:12
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