Who is Jack Mann and will Prince Harry be his best man?

Having a 'for show' best man is an unusual predicament. For royal brothers, Prince William and Prince Harry, is seems to be the norm.

Both brothers apparently had each other for the role as a PR-move for good 'optics' and what the British public would expect. In reality, Prince William had close friends James Meade and Thomas Van Straubenzee actually give the traditional speech at the reception.

Harry had several ushers on his big day, including his fellow polo-player Jack Mann and his closest friend Charlie van Straubenzee, brother of Prince William’s best friend Thomas.

Jack Mann appeared in the 'band of brothers' snap, taken at Windsor Castle as the Duke of Sussex and six of his closest confederates stood shoulder to shoulder on the night of Prince Harry's wedding.

It's been suggested that Jack Mann was not just one of Harry's ushers but was, in fact, his 'real' best man, rather than Prince William.

And now Jack is to be married to osteopath Isabella Clark and many are wondering whether Harry will be asked to play best man.

Who is Jack Mann?

Harry and Jack (40) met as officer cadets at Sandhurst and were both commissioned into the Blues and Royals). He is co-founder of Alma Risk, a private security company.

Mann had a recent business trip to Libya interrupted in December 2022.

Mr Mann was detained by security officials before travelling to war-torn Libya, being questioned by Maltese police who challenged his claim that he was on a mission to deliver medical training.

Maltese police later confirmed to the Mail that they ‘spoke to the passengers for clarification of the proposed activities in Libya’ and that no further action was taken.

The exploits of his father, Old Etonian adventurer and former SAS officer Simon Mann, mean that the family name can sometimes generate unfortunate attention. Mann senior was a participant in the so-called 'Wonga coup' of 2004.

Intended to remove Teodoro Obiang, president of Equatorial Guinea, from power, it ended in Simon 's imprisonment, with Obiang threatening to eat his testicles. Mann Snr survived five years' captivity and returned home intact.

He is engaged to Isabelle Clark, the daughter of property hotshot Stephen Clark. Isabella's home is a magnificent, crenelated, 17th-century pile, with huge lawns down to a river.

Will Harry be his best man?

Mr Mann hosted Meghan Markle for dinner parties at his West London home during the early days of her courtship with Harry. However, he is thought to have grown apart from Harry since the wedding.

Mr Mann said, when asked by the media about his wedding and friendship with Harry: "I’m not going to comment on anything to do with this."

Harry has apparently made more effort to reconnect with old chums since 2021 when he returned from the US for Prince Philip's funeral. He is said to have arranged a lunch with his ushers, including Jack.

Whether Harry is best man or not, he's highly likely to be in attendance.