Jack Whitehall dresses up as Harry Styles and asks to join One Direction at 2015 Royal Variety Performance

The comedian hosted the annual event watched by Prince Harry at the Royal Albert Hall

Jack Whitehall with One Direction during the Royal Variety Performance 2015 at the Royal Albert Ha (PA)

Jack Whitehall has won over One Direction fans by dressing up as singer Harry Styles.

The comedian, who is hosting this year’s Royal Variety Performance, joined the boyband on stage after their performance donning ripped skinny jeans, an open animal print shirt, long wig and black hat.

As Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson and Liam Payne stifled their giggles, Whitehall offered to replace departed member Zayn Malik.

“I was just wondering, obviously you lost a member, and then decided you were going to take a break,” he said.

“But if there was someone around who was willing to step in, might that be a decision you reconsider?”

Payne replied: “Maybe if you shaved your chest a little bit.”

“I’ll be taking this from a boyband to a man-band,” Whitehall joked. “It’s called puberty.”

Other performances at the Royal Variety Performance, which was filmed in November at the Royal Albert Hall but aired on Tuesday night, came from singers including Kylie Minogue, The Corrs, Little Mix, Ricky Martin and Brandon Flowers.