A school friend of Prince Harry’s, Alex Rayner, who knows both the Duke and Duchess of Sussex has spoken out after they’ve become embroiled in a bitter row over the Sentebale charity

Prince Harry and Meghan at a polo match for Sentebale last year (Image: PA)

A pal of Prince Harry’s has hit out at claims Meghan Markle gatecrashed a charity fundraiser amid a bitter dispute. Harry has become embroiled in a row with Sophie Chandauka, the chairwoman of Sentebale, the African charity that he founded almost 20 years ago but dramatically quit as a patron last week in a boardroom battle.

Dr Chandauka has already alleged the duke tried to ‘eject’ her through ‘bullying’ and ‘harassment’. Meghan became embroiled in the row after a video resurfaced from a Sentebale fundraising polo match in Miami last April. It shows the Duchess of Sussex appear to choreograph who stood next to Harry, and in an awkward moment, Ms Chandauka moved from beside the duke to Meghan’s side ducking under the trophy.

‌

Harry and Meghan have become embroiled in a bitter row engulfing Sentebale (Image: Getty Images for Sentebale)

Dr Chandauka addressed the clip in an interview claiming that Meghan had only decided to turn up at the event at short notice – bringing her “very famous friend” Serena Williams with her. Recalling the day to Sir Trevor Phillips, she claimed: “We would have been really excited had we known ahead of time [Meghan was coming], but we didn’t.”

She also claimed that after the video appeared online, Harry had asked her to issue a statement in support of Meghan, but said she refused as the charity “cannot be an extension of the Sussexes”. However, Alex Rayner, a pal of Harry’s from their days at Eton College, has defended Meghan after saying he had been authorised to speak out by the Duke and that Dr Chandauka should have been “delighted to have Meghan there”. He told the Daily Mail: “When you have both the Sussexes there it doubles the reaction, the power of it. And yet here she [Dr Chandauka] is refusing to get hold of a negative narrative which damages Meghan. It makes you wonder where it came from?”

Harry and Meghan with Dr Sophie Chandauka at the polo fundraiser (Image: PA)

Addressing claims that Meghan turned up to the event unannounced, he added: “It’s Harry’s charity polo match and Meghan is his wife, of course, she should have expected her there.” His comments come as Harry has also been accused of sending Dr Chandauka an ‘unpleasant’ and ‘imperious’ message after she failed to publicly quash rumours of a rift with Meghan.

The Telegraph claimed a member of Harry’s team asked Ms Chandauka to issue a statement to quash any rumours about tensions with Meghan, but when she refused the duke reportedly contacted her directly. The newspaper alleged Harry demanded she “explain herself” and claimed sources said the note was “unpleasant” in tone and used “imperious” language.

Harry founded Sentebale in honour of his mother Diana, Princess of Wales in 2006 with Prince Seeiso of Lesotho to help young people and children in southern Africa, particularly those living with HIV and Aids. But Harry, his co-founder and several trustees have left the organisation in a dispute with Ms Chandauka, having requested her resignation.

Mr Rayner added: “H is very happy for me to speak for him about how he feels about this awful situation. He is just beyond heartbroken and flabbergasted that the charity he founded as a teenager has been taken hostage by the chair. It feels tantamount to a hostile takeover.”

A source close to the trustees and patrons also described Ms Chandauka’s interviews as a “publicity stunt”, adding: “They remain firm in their resignation, for the good of the charity, and look forward to the adjudication of the truth.”

In a joint statement issued last week Harry and Prince Seeiso backed the departing trustees and stepped back as patrons until further notice, saying it was “devastating” that the relationship between Sentebale’s trustees and chairwoman of the board “broke down beyond repair”. The Duke of Sussex’x office declined to comment.