These are some new photos of Prince Harry making his first official public appearance since Royal Jewel-gate two weeks ago. Harry flew from LA to London immediately after the photos of his boozy Las Vegas fun times went public, and he’s been “in hiding” ever since. There were mixed reports as to where Harry was hiding out – some said he was staying with friends in the English country, some said London, some said Scotland (where his grandmother and father were on holiday). I still don’t really know. But Harry is back in the public eye now – last night, he was the WellChild Awards at London’s Intercontinental Hotel. Harry has been patron of WellChild for years, and he does a lot of work and fundraising for the charity. So… obviously, when we see photos of Harry being loving and lovely with sick kids, we’re not supposed to be thinking of his butt crack. Except one kid almost brought it up!!

Prince Harry was “joking and relaxed,” according to an observer, at a charity event in London on Monday – during his first public appearance since photos of him partying naked in Las Vegas surfaced two weeks ago.

After a little boy, Alex Logan, appeared on a British TV news report saying he would tell the prince, “I’m glad you’ve got your clothes on,” Harry, 27, preempted the youngster during their meeting at the WellChild Awards at the Intercontinental Hotel.

“You keep looking up at your Mum. It looks like you’re dying to say something but you’re worried she’ll tell you off,” the prince said, wagging his finger at Logan, 6. “I heard you were on ITV earlier and you said something cheeky but let’s not talk about that here.”

Logan, who has leukemia, was one of the children honored Monday by the charity, which has had Prince Harry as a patron for the last five years.

“He was very calm and composed. You’d never know anything had happened,” another observer said of Harry, who has had the support of the palace since the revealing photos were published. “He was hugging every child.”

At a reception, Harry, often crouching down, spent time talking to the annual event’s littlest guests, including Hope Hillis, 5, who gave the prince two sloppy smooches on the face. Joked Harry: “But we’ve only just met!”

Later on, Harry presented the award for the Most Inspirational Child (age 3-6) and delivered a speech.

“I’m never shy in coming forward. . .” Harry said, causing the quiet room to roar with laughter. “It is difficult to imagine to imagine a finer, more inspirational group of people than is gathered here tonight. I come along to the WellChild Awards knowing that I will meet old friends and make new ones. I am totally unprepared for the extraordinary reality of what greets me. I leave a very humble man.”

“All of you — children, families, nurses, doctors — are too remarkable to describe with mere words,” Harry also said. “You’re fun, brave, inspirational, dedicated, magnificent. . . I think you represent the very best of Britain. Your spirit triumphs through adversity.”

Harry has yet to make an official comment about his wild weekend in the U.S., though party girl Carrie Reichert opened up about it in a recent interview with the U.K. publication The People (as excerpted by The Mirror). In her tell-all, the 32-year-old British beautician who resides in San Diego, California, claimed she and a naked Harry “kissed for 15 to 20 minutes” in his VIP suite.

A Palace insider denies Reichert’s claims, telling Us Weekly: “The story is not true. Harry’s disappointed, but not surprised, that people are making up stories for money.”

While Reichert’s version of events may be exaggerated, fellow Vegas partier Melissa Vagner tells the new issue of Us Weekly (out now) that Harry “had two things in his sights: vodka and women.”

[From People Magazine & Us Weekly]

Well, at least he’s laughing about it. I like that Harry had been briefed that a small child was going to say something “cheeky” to him, and Harry nipped it in the bud. That cracks me up! Some kid is LITERALLY busting Harry’s balls. Something tells me that even if other stuff comes out about Harry’s Vegas partying (cocaine, hookers, what have you), Harry will be able to weather it because he’s able to laugh at himself – one of the most underrated qualities in a human being, in my opinion.

So, what’s next for the wayward prince’s “Please Forget About My Butt Crack” PR campaign? Please let it be a photo op with puppies. And then maybe a trip to Africa. And then probably another tour in Afghanistan.

Photos courtesy of WENN.