Prince Harry would "love to have kids right now"
LONDON -- This is to be a year of change, not just for the growing family of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, but also for Prince William's red-haired little brother Harry.
In the middle of an official week-long tour of New Zealand, Prince Harry discussed the end of his military career -- looming just weeks away -- and what could be next on his agenda in an exclusive interview with CBS partner network Sky News.
Speaking to Sky correspondent Rhiannon Mills, the still-single prince uttered words Monday that will likely set hearts aflutter around the world.
The 30-year-old highly-eligible bachelor said he's looking for love, and made it clear he wants to settle down and start a family as soon as the right woman finds her way into his life.
Mills asked Harry if he was feeling any paternal instinct well-up inside after seeing his brother and Kate round-out their nuclear family with the birth of Princess Charlotte Elizabeth Diana on May 2.
"You know, there come times where you think, 'now's the time to settle down, or now's not,' whatever the way it is, but I don't think you can force these things, it'll happen when it's going to happen," said Harry.
But in a rare personal insight, the prince then seemed to admit a certain level of envy of his brother.
"Of course, I'd love to have kids right now, but there's a process that one has to go through," said Harry. "Tours like this are great fun. Hopefully I'm doing alright by myself, but it'd be great to have someone else next to me to share the pressure. But, you know, time will come. Whatever happens, happens, I guess."
The young royal didn't come across as being in any rush, however, to find the right lady. He has enough on his plate this year, with a dramatic change in his professional life as he leaves the British military after a decade of service that brought him to the front line of the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan.
In June, Prince Harry will retire and immerse himself more in engagements as a high-ranking member of the British royal family.
"It is a crossroads, I'm in the same position now as most people in my year group or my rank would be in, because I'm a non grad I'm a bit behind everyone else and most of the guys that I joined with at the time have already left for numerous reasons. But it is a case of, if you move on (in the military) more responsibilities come, and I suppose with wanting to take on slightly more of this (gestures outward referencing royal) role, I don't feel as though I'd be in the right position to take on the careers of more soldiers and take on the responsibility of continuing to fly for instance," Harry told Mills.
But he also made it clear he won't be content just smiling for cameras and shaking hands. So what will he do after leaving his job as an Army helicopter pilot?
The prince said he has some things on the "short list," but didn't want to stir the rumor mill, so he kept those secrets to himself.
"Hopefully it will be something where I can still give something back, I suppose. This part of the role is fantastic but I, and William, both of us, we feel as if we need to have a wage as well, to work with normal people to keep us sane, to keep us ticking along," said the prince.
"From our point of view, in the future, if you want to make a big contribution or a valid contribution and be taken seriously, then we need to work alongside other people."
Prince Harry said he would try hard to find "something that will have an even balance," and make the British people proud of him.
Whatever his next career move, the world's glossy magazines and tabloid newspapers will almost certainly be more interested in who he eventually decides to share those life adventures with, on a more personal level.