How has Harry been reduced to tacky selfies with German reality stars? Royal experts question Duke of Sussex for posing with TV ‘prince’ Mario-Max Schaumburg-Lippe – as he posts his birth certificate to prove links to ‘royalty’

Prince Harry made a ‘fool of himself’ by posing for a selfie with a German ‘prince’ best known for Big Brother, Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and TV shopping at the ‘Living Legends of Aviation’ gala, experts told MailOnline today.

Mario-Max Schaumburg-Lippe and the Duke of Sussex grinned as they stood together at the black tie event hosted by John Travolta at a Hilton in LA on Friday night.

Today the 46-year-old said he felt ‘sorry’ for Harry and shared his own birth certificate on social media after his own family even questioned his right to use the title of prince because he was adopted in his twenties.

Mario-Max has been dubbed the ‘King of Trash TV’ for appearing on Germany’s Big Brother before cameos on Real Housewives of Beverly Hills when he dated a star and Bravo’s Millionaire Matchmaker when he went in search of a wife in Iowa.

The red-carpet loving German, who calls himself a ‘royal and TV anchor’ on Instagram, has even appeared on a shopping channel to sell a ‘wealth elixir’ at 99 euros for a 56ml bottle. Other embarrassing stunts include semi-naked modelling of lederhosen-style swimming trunks. 

He also has a penchant for asking royals as well as the rich and famous people for selfies to post on social media including Prince Albert of Monaco, Lady Gaga, Emily Blunt, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Paris Hilton and now Prince Harry.

Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams told MailOnline: ‘Harry has made a fool of himself’. 

Harry and Meghan’s biographer Phil Dampier said: ‘If Harry wants to be taken seriously he should not be posing up with people like this “German Prince” who has been on their equivalent of Celebrity Big Brother and been dubbed the king of Trash TV on shopping channels. It’s very sad to see someone who was once a real life royal with so much to offer reduced to this sort of tacky selfie’.

Prince Harry was all smiles as he posed for a selfie with Prince Mario-Max Schaumburg-Lippe at the Living Legends of Aviation in Los Angeles on Friday night

Mario-Max Schaumburg-Lippe was adopted by a German Prince and Princess when he was in his 20s

Prince Mario-Max flogging ‘wealth elixir’ on a shopping channel where he tells viewers ‘they can have the life they wanted’ by using the product

In 2009 he strutted down the catwalk as he modelled the ‘Badelederhose’, described on his website as ‘Bavarian-styled swim trunks’

Mario-Max pictured with Paris Hilton in 2019. He boasts connections stretching back to William of Orange, which would make him a very, very distant cousin of the British Royals

Prince Mario-Max posts pictures of himself posing with celebrities on his Instagram page. Pictured with Lady Gaga in 2018  and right with Emily Blunt

He grabbed a selfie with Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber in 2018. 

Mario-Max’s website boasts of family connections stretching back to William of Orange, which would make him a very, very distant cousin of the British Royals including Harry. 

He insists he has the right to use the royal title after he was adopted by a member of the Schaumburg-Lippe family when he was in his twenties.

But the head of his family, Prince Alexander of Schaumburg-Lippe, accused him of ‘harvesting our name for personal gain’. Prince Alexander also warned Harry to ‘stay away from this man’, claiming he could not ‘stoop lower’ than be seen with Mario-Max. 

Hitting back Mario-Max  shared his birth certificate online to back his claims that he is the son of a prince and princess with links to royal houses in Germany and Denmark. 

Prince Mario-Max today declared that fresh scrutiny of his princely credentials after the selfie made him sympathise with the Duke of Sussex and his wife Meghan Markle. He said: ‘I feel so sorry for Prince Harry’. 

Speaking about meeting Harry on Friday night, Mario-Max told The Mail on Sunday yesterday: ‘We had a personal conversation and he was fabulous, very humble, very sweet. It filled me with joy.’ 

Mario-Max insists he has the right to use the royal title after he was adopted by a member of the Schaumburg-Lippe family when he was around 23 or 24. 

Since then the 46-year-old was on the German version of Celebrity Big Brother in 2014 where he was evicted after just eight days inside the house.

He presents a royal show called ‘Astro Royal’ from Berlin that is broadcast on cable, satellite and web-tv. He also says he is a journalist.

And in an attempt to back up his own royal lineage he shared his official birth documents from 2009, after he was adopted. 

Tweeting in German and English, he said that he is son of ‘Prince Waldemar, son of Princess Feodora of Denmark, and Princess Antonia Schaumburg-Lippe’. 

His small army of social media supporters backed him, with one saying of his critics: ‘You are a gentleman sir. Ignore these people. They have no honour’.

Prince Harry has been warned to ‘stay away’ from a German ‘prince’, who is accused of using his spurious connections to flog a ‘wealth elixir’, after posing for a selfie with him at an aviation awards ceremony.

Richard Fitzwilliams said: ‘A selfie on the evening of receiving this “Living Legends of Aviation” award with the self-styled Prince Mario-Max Schaumburg-Lippe was surely most unwise. 

‘We know the Sussexes’ found many of the royal family’s rules restricting, but discouraging selfies is a sensible one. This “prince” has also been dubbed “the King of Trash TV” having apparently appeared on the German version of Big Brother. Given how sensitive the Sussexes are about their privacy and some of the revelations in his memoir, Spare, which left him open to so much mockery, you have to wonder, what comes next’.

The duke was all smiles as he posed with Prince Mario-Max Schaumburg-Lippe – who was once dubbed the ‘King of Trash TV’ – at the ‘Living Legends of Aviation’ in Los Angeles on Friday night.

The head of the family, Prince Alexander of Schaumburg-Lippe, told The Mail on Sunday last night: ‘It’s very painful for me, this guy has been harvesting our name for his personal gain. Prince Harry cannot stoop lower than appearing with him. I would advise him to stay away from this man. ‘

Mario-Max has been dubbed ‘the King of Trash TV’ in the German Press (Pictured in October 2023)

The head of the family, Prince Alexander of Schaumburg-Lippe, said Harry ‘could not stoop any lower’ than appearing with Prince Mario-Max

Mario-Max claims he has the right to use the royal title after he was adopted by a distant relative of the family when he was 23 years old

The 46-year-old was on the German version of Celebrity Big Brother in 2014 where he was evicted after just eight days inside the house, as well as appearing on a shopping channel to sell a ‘wealth elixir’

Socialites Cat Boe, Mario-Max, and Bahati ‘Kolibri’ Venus arrive for the Vienna Opera Ball at the State Opera in  2014

He is also a regular visitor to America, where he has posed for photos with celebrities including Paris Hilton , Liza Minnelli and Ivana Trump

Mario-Max has been dubbed ‘the King of Trash TV’ in the German Press for appearing on the local version of Big Brother, and hawking products on shopping channels including a so-called ‘wealth elixir’.

He is also a regular visitor to America, where he has posed for photos with celebrities including Paris Hilton, Liza Minnelli and Ivana Trump at parties and red-carpet events, and where he once dated one of the Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills.

On Friday he immediately posted the photo of himself with Prince Harry – as featured on our front page – on social media. It attracted comments including: ‘So cringe. Two irrelevant middle-aged men without serious pursuit using their titles to grift in superficial Hollywood,’ and ‘I’m embarrassed for both of you. This must be a joke.’ 

The Duke of Sussex was inducted into the ‘Living Legends of Aviation’ on Friday night where he was asked by host John Travolta about his first flight experience.

He stood to a rapturous applause as he recollected how he was aged seven or eight years old when he excitedly jumped into a Wessex Helicopter.

Harry joked: ‘But then my father jumped in behind me and I was terrified.’ 

But the duke made no mention of his sister in law Kate Middleton or his father’s medical dramas in the past week.

The audience erupted into laughter and applause in response to the prince’s quip with whistling also heard. Someone else could also be heard muttering ‘excellent’.

King Charles joined the Royal Air Force (RAF) in August 1971 where he was trained to fly both a jet and a helicopter.

He had already taken flying lessons at university and was able to fly himself to RAF Cranwell for his first day of training.

After completing training, Charles gained his RAF Wings as Flight Lieutenant Wales. He was the first member of the royal family to gain this award.

Harry attended the ceremony at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills last night without wife Meghan Markle, with the Duchess of Sussex having to stay home as one of their children became unwell, the PA news agency reported.

He paid tribute to his mother Diana during his acceptance speech and took a moment to remember the Grease star’s meeting with Diana at a White House dinner for President Ronald Reagan in 1985.

Accepting the award from Travolta, the duke said: ‘I was just a one-year-old when you danced with my mum at the White House and now look at us.’

Harry completed two tours of Afghanistan as a forward air controller and an Apache helicopter pilot, having flown countless training missions in the UK, US and Australia.

He served for 10 years in the military, rising to the rank of Captain, and later founded the Invictus Games – a sporting event for wounded military personnel and veterans.

Harry takes his place alongside other aviation and aerospace ‘legends’ including Buzz Aldrin, Jeff Bezos, Tom Cruise, Neil Armstrong, Harrison Ford, Morgan Freeman and Elon Musk.

Prince Harry pictured with John Travolta, Lauren Sanchez and Bill Gates at the Living Legends Of Aviation

The prince is seen arriving for Friday’s event in Los Angeles

Harry is seen in December 2012 working as a helicopter pilot in Afghanistan

Harry is pictured in March 2011 standing in front of an Apache Helicopter a few days after the royal passed the half-decade milestone to become a captain in the British Army

The event’s website also praised the duke for his work with charities and organisations including Travalyst, Sentebale, African Parks and WellChild.

A statement on its website said: ‘Prince Harry is a humanitarian, military veteran, mental wellness advocate and environmentalist.

‘He has dedicated his life to advancing causes that he is passionate about and that bring about permanent change for people and places.’

Harry, who was sporting a black velvet tuxedo, was inducted alongside US navy pilot Fred George and former world speed record holder Steve Hinton, as well as Lauren Sanchez – who is engaged to Amazon founder Bezos.

She received the Elling Halvorson Vertical Flight Hall of Fame Award for her skills as a helicopter pilot and aviation businesswoman, having founded aerial filming company Black Ops Aviation in 2016.

The duke’s appearance comes as his father, the King, prepared to undergo treatment for an enlarged prostate next week, while his sister-in-law the Princess of Wales recovers from abdominal surgery in the London Clinic.