
Sophie Chandauka says duke unleashed ‘Sussex machine’ but source close to ex-trustees claims accusation baseless
The chair of a charity set up by Prince Harry has accused him of “harassment and bullying at scale” after he and several others quit the organisation earlier this week.
The Duke of Sussex was said to have initiated the campaign by the “unleashing of the Sussex machine”.
Dr Sophie Chandauka, the chair of the charity Sentebale, which helps children and adolescents struggling to come to terms with diagnoses of HIV and Aids, told Trevor Phillips on Sky News: “The only reason I’m here … is because at some point on Tuesday, Prince Harry authorised the release of a damaging piece of news to the outside world without informing me or my country directors, or my executive director. That is an example of harassment and bullying at scale.”
On Tuesday, Prince Harry quit as patron of the charity. He released a joint statement with co-founder Prince Seeiso of Lesotho, claiming they had been forced to step down “in support of and solidarity with” the board of trustees who had also resigned, due to a dispute with Chandauka, which reportedly arose from a decision to focus fundraising in Africa.
Harry and Seeiso wrote that the relationship “broke down beyond repair, creating an untenable situation”.
Sky News reported that one of its sources, who is “close to the former trustees of the Sentebale charity”, said that Chandauka’s accusation that she was bullied by Prince Harry and the “Sussex machine” was completely baseless.
In a statement earlier this week, Chandauka said: “There are people in this world who behave as though they are above the law and mistreat people, and then play the victim card and use the very press they disdain to harm people who have the courage to challenge their conduct.
“Beneath all the victim narrative and fiction that has been syndicated to the press is the story of a woman who dared to blow the whistle about issues of poor governance, weak executive management, abuse of power, bullying, harassment, misogyny, misogynoir – and the cover-up that ensued.”
Sentebale was set up in 2006 by Harry after spending two months in Lesotho during his gap year in 2004.
The prince’s acrimonious departure from the charity comes five years after he told a Sentebale dinner party in 2020: “When I lost my mum … you took me under your wing. You looked out for me for so long. Together, you have given me an education about living, and this role has taught me more about what is right and just than I could ever have imagined,” he told dinner guests. “We are taking a leap of faith, so thank you for giving me the courage to take this next step.”
Representatives for Harry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the allegations.
‘Lonely’ Prince Harry didn’t know his dad was in hospital in cancer battle until he saw it on the news as worried friends say the Duke barely leaves his Montecito mansion… and is now Meghan Markle’s ‘spare’
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Prince Harry only heard his father was in hospital after suffering side effects from his cancer treatment when the news broke to the rest of the world, it has been claimed.
Insiders have said the Prince of Sussex, 40, is ‘lonelier than ever’ and now barely leaves his Montecito mansion – as Monday marks the fifth anniversary of Megxit.
Meghan Markle, on the other hand, has continued to push ahead with her own personal projects, including a lifestyle show released on Netflix earlier this month.
A source told The Sun: ‘First he was a spare to William, now he’s increasingly looking like a spare to Meghan — and it’s not a great look.’
Another added: ‘He misses his family terribly, but no one is speaking to him any more.
‘He just wants to go for a beer with the guys, but his only friends are just the husbands of Meghan’s friends.’
It is believed the palace chose not to contact Harry about his father’s hospital admission as not to alarm him 5,000 miles away.
King Charles was forced to cancel a string of engagements on Thursday after he was admitted to hospital amid his ongoing cancer care.
Charles, 76, had a ‘scheduled’ appointment but suffered ‘temporary side-effects’ that required a short period of medical observation, Buckingham Palace said.
Prince Harry (pictured) only heard his father was in hospital after suffering side effects from his cancer treatment when the news broke to the rest of the world, it has been claimed
Meghan Markle has continued to push ahead with her own personal projects, including a lifestyle show released on Netflix earlier this month
Charles smiles and waves at well-wishers as he leaves Clarence House in London on Friday morning
Sources insisted there was ‘no drama’ and described the ‘brief’ trip to hospital as being ‘connected to [his] treatment programme’.
However, it is likely to be a blow for Charles’s all-but estranged son Harry, who was this week also involved in a row surrounding his African children’s charity Sentable.
The Duke of Sussex was left ‘reeling’ after he sensationally resigned from the organisation following a boardroom battle.
Harry’s role in the HIV and AIDS charity, which was set up to honour his mother Diana, was also one of his last remaining legacies as a working royal.
A a source who has known the prince since the charity’s inception told the Mail: ‘There’s no way of sugar-coating the damage of this, regardless of who’s in the right. He’ll be reeling.’
Harry’s relationship with his family has been strained ever since he stepped down from his royal duties five years ago and moved to California.
He also gave up his military titles and any income from the Sovereign Grant in the process.
Prince Harry dances with deaf children during at visit to the Kananelo Centre for the deaf in Maseru in 2013
Meghan is pictured with husband Prince Harry, who is set to make a brief appearance in the final episode of her new Netflix show
King Charles III and Queen Camilla on Tuesday at a reception at Clarence House for authors, members of the literary community and representatives from The Queen’s Reading Room
Prince Harry last saw last saw King Charles for a fleeting half-hour visit last February when his father was first diagnosed with cancer.
And it was reported that after the brief meeting, Charles flew by helicopter to Sandringham without Harry.
The prince has also grown apart from his brother William.
Harry flew back to the UK for his uncle Robert Fellowes’s funeral last year but the pair barely spoke.
However despite the difficulties, Harry has insisted that he will not return to the UK unless he wins his High Court fight for 24-hour armed security.
It is thought while he still remains in contact with some friends in Britain, others have distanced themselves from him after his attacks on the royal family.
And it is not the first time some of Harry’s pals have raised concerns about his ‘lonely’ life in California.
Reports last year implied Harry was at a ‘crossroads’ and that ‘exile in California’ was not where he wanted to end up.
A source quoted in The Times said: ‘He used to love a night out in the pub and hanging out in the country with friends.
‘Maybe he has grown into a different person, but do I think he’d really suit the Californian lifestyle? No. Now we’ve seen it all play out, what has that left him with?
‘On the surface, an enviable lifestyle — but for the Harry I know, I can’t imagine that gilded exile in California is where he wanted to end up.’
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex attending the Whistler Welcome Celebration at the 2025 Invictus Games in Whistler, Canada
Meghan, hand in hand with her daughter Lilibet, in the cover photo for her new brand’s website
Prince Harry attends the Biathlon event during day three of the 2025 Invictus Games at Whistler Olympic Park on February 11
Prince Harry meets the community at Matlameng – Ha Mahlehle, in Leribe, Lesotho, in October 2024
It comes as the King appeared in good spirits on Friday as he was seen out in public for the first time.
Charles, 76, smiled and waved at well-wishers as he left Clarence House in London in an Audi and is understood to be going to his Highgrove estate in Gloucestershire.
On Friday morning, a large crowd including members of the public and photographers watched as Charles was driven out of his London residence at around 10.30am.
Sat in the back of a black Audi, he waved down the window and smiled at well-wishers. Moments earlier the Princess Royal was driven out in a black Bentley.
The King visited the London Clinic on Thursday morning and travelled to and from the hospital by car. He was not joined by his wife Queen Camilla during his brief stay.
After he appeared today, tourist Julian Mati, 34, said it was a ‘relief’ to see the King looking well. He added: ‘We were horrified when we heard the news yesterday.
‘We had come down to the palace today to take pictures but we never imagined we would see the King. To see him smiling and waving, it’s such a relief.’
Buckingham Palace said in a statement on Thursday night: ‘Following scheduled and ongoing medical treatment for cancer this morning, the King experienced temporary side effects that required a short period of observation in hospital.
‘His Majesty’s afternoon engagements were therefore postponed.’
The palace added: ‘His Majesty has now returned to Clarence House and as a precautionary measure, acting on medical advice, tomorrow’s (Friday’s) diary programme will also be rescheduled.
‘His Majesty would like to send his apologies to all those who may be inconvenienced or disappointed as a result’.
Head of Prince Harry’s Sentebale charity accuses him of ‘harassment and bullying at scale’ after calling the Sussex brand ‘toxic’ – and claims they asked her to defend Meghan Markle against negative publicity
The head of Prince Harry’s charity has accused him of ‘harassment and bullying at scale’ after calling the Sussex brand ‘toxic’.
Dr Sophie Chandauka, the chair of Sentebale, an organisation the Duke of Sussex co-founded, claimed that Harry ‘unleashed the Sussex machine on me’.
In an astonishing message to Harry she said: ‘The team is resolved that Sentebale will live on, with or without you.’
In another interview, Dr Chandauka claimed she first felt tension between Harry and herself a year ago.
She said at one point she was asked by his team to defend Meghan against negative publicity, but she refused.
Prince Harry dramatically quit Sentebale last week ‘in solidarity’ with the charity’s disgruntled trustees who resigned when relations with formidable Zimbabwean lawyer Dr Chandauka ‘broke down beyond repair’ after she refused their request to step down.
But in an extraordinary interview today she raised the stakes in the increasingly ugly dispute engulfing the charity, saying the Sussexes’ ‘brand’ had hindered the charity.
‘The number one risk for this organisation was the toxicity of its lead patron’s brand,’ Dr Chandauka told the Financial Times.
She argued that controversy surrounding Prince Harry since his move to the US had an impact on the charity’s ability to diversify its donor pool and make senior hires.
‘When you start to interview people, they’re asking questions about, well, these mixed messages around the patron,’ she said.
Dr Sophie Chandauka (pictured), the chair of Prince Harry’s beleaguered charity Sentebale, said she had been asked to defend Meghan Markle against negative publicity
In a separate interview on Sky’s Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillip, the Chairwoman said the Duke authorised the release of a statement revealing that he and other trustees had quit the charity, which she described as ‘unleashing of the Sussex machine on me’
Dr Chandauka (third from right) claimed the Sussexes’ brand had become ‘toxic’ (pictured at the Royal Salute Polo Challenge held in Florida in April last year to raise funds for Sentebale)
Prince Harry and Prince Seeiso of Lesotho quit as patrons of the charity they had founded in solidarity with trustees who said they could not carry on under Dr Chandauka
Elsewhere she accused Harry and fellow co-founder Prince Seeiso of Lesotho of trying to ‘force a failure’ of the organisation only to then come to its rescue.
In her first interview since the dispute erupted, Dr Chandauka issued an impassioned defence of her record.
In another bombshell allegation, Dr Chandauka accused the Duke of Sussex ‘harassment and bullying at scale’.
In a separate interview on Sky’s Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips she said the Duke authorised the release of a statement revealing that he and other trustees had quit the charity, which she described as ‘unleashing of the Sussex machine on me’.
Mr Philips asked her: ‘What you’re essentially saying is that the Duke of Sussex is guilty of harassment and bullying and improper conduct in the governance of the charity?’
In response, she said Harry’s release of ‘a damaging piece of news to the outside world without informing me or my country directors’ was an ‘attack’ and ‘an example of harassment and bullying at scale’.
She added: ‘And so if the world didn’t want to believe that there’s such a thing as bullying, this unleashing of the Sussex machine on me and the 540 employees, at Sentebale, who received this and have had to defend it….’
At this point Mr Phillips interjected, asking what she means by the Sussex machine.
Dr Chandauka replied: ‘The PR machine that supports Prince Harry’s efforts, the only way we discovered of his decision was through the Sussex machine activating newspapers.’
It followed a statement last week from Sentebale – which was formed in 2006 in memory of Harry’s late mother Diana to help Aids orphans in southern Africa – suggesting ‘people in the field’ were more important than its trustees.
Igniting a poisonous internecine dispute, the charity said in a highly charged statement last week: ‘There are people in this world who behave as though they are above the law and mistreat people, and then play the victim card and use the very press they disdain to harm people who have the courage to challenge their conduct.’
There was a deafening silence from Harry about the claims.
But a source who has known the prince since the charity’s inception told the Mail: ‘There’s no way of sugar-coating the damage of this, regardless of who’s in the right. He’ll be reeling.’
The charity also reiterated its commitment to supporting young people in the region without the support of its royal patron, who stepped back from his role in protest at the ‘untenable’ actions of Ms Chandauka.
A source close to the former trustees of the Sentebale charity described Dr. Chandauka’s claims that she was bullied and harassed, briefed against by Prince Harry, or that the Sussex machine was ‘unleashed on her’ as ‘completely baseless’.
Sentebale and its trustees are facing allegations of racism, sexism and bullying from Ms Chandauka.
Dr Chandauka has accused Sentebale and its trustees of racist, sexist and bullying conduct
But Dr Chandauka said the organisation’s setup was ‘no longer appropriate in a post-Black Lives Matter world – and that trustees resented any notion of change
She claimed she had been asked to defend Meghan from negative press reports – but deemed the Sussex brand ‘toxic’
Sources say after the board of trustees formally requested Ms Chandauka’s resignation she declined and then, when they tried to force the move through with a vote, she filed a legal challenge at the High Court to prevent their meeting.
While there is no formal record of proceedings at the Royal Courts of Justice, it is claimed that the court did not grant an injunction and, as the charity board meeting was ultimately cancelled, the judge decided that no further hearing or court appearance was necessary.
It is not clear where this leaves Ms Chandauka’s legal challenge. Prince Harry is not personally the subject of any legal action in this matter.
Representatives for Prince Harry have strongly denied he had sought to engineer the collapse of the charity in order to rescue it.
Ms Chandauka, who trained as a lawyer in London, told the FT that she has been on a mission to transform the charity.
‘The way the organisation had been set up in 2006, was no longer appropriate in 2023 in a post-Black Lives Matter world,’ she said.
She added that her changes triggered friction between UK-based staff and those in Lesotho, where most of the charity’s 500-plus workforce are based.
The board, she said, felt ‘a loss of power and control and influence… oh my goodness, the Africans are taking over’.
Far from being a bully herself, she insisted that during her time as chair she experienced ‘disrespect, bullying and intimidation’ and ‘misogyny and misogynoir (misogyny directed at Black women)’, allegations that have been vehemently denied.
There is no suggestion that Princes Harry or Seeiso were alleged to have behaved in this way.
Kelello Lerotholi, one of the trustees who resigned this week, told Sky News he did not recognise the allegations: ‘I can honestly say, in the meetings I was present in, there was never even a hint of such.’
Prince Harry pictured on a visit to Lesotho with Ntoli Moletsane of Sentebale in October last year
Among the trustees to resign was former Royal Equerry Mark Dyer (pictured with Harry). The trustees said there was ‘no other path forward’
And Baroness Lynda Chalker of Wallasey, who served as a trustee for nearly two decades until November, has spoken of how Dr Chandauka ‘almost dictatorial’ style had led to clashes.
The origins of the dispute have been highly contested by both sides. Dr Chandauka said she first felt tension between Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, and herself in April 2024.
Some sources insisted the dispute had nothing to do with personal animosity. ‘There are real issues at hand that have been raised and not addressed,’ said one.
‘The trustees tried to negotiate this privately and requested she consider her position due to their lack of trust and confidence in her as a leader.’
Lawyers for Prince Harry have said there had been a breakdown in relations between the chair and key individuals, including some staff, trustees and major funders.
A Charity Commission spokesperson said: ‘We can confirm that we are aware of concerns about the governance of Sentebale. We are assessing the issues to determine the appropriate regulatory steps.’
The charity’s five former trustees, who include Harry’s long-time mentor Mark Dyer – a former army captain who accompanied him on his first gap-year trip to Lesotho – said in their resignation statement that ‘we see no other path forward as the result of our loss in trust and confidence in the chair of the board.’
In an apparent further dig at Harry, Dr Chandauka added that ‘for me, this is not a vanity project from which I can resign when I am called to account’.
She said: ‘I am an African who has had the privilege of a world class education and career. I will not be intimidated. I must stand for something.’
And she insisted that she would not step down from her role. One source close to the prince told the Mail that it was a ‘hugely sensitive’ situation and urged people to see ‘the facts play out’.
‘The Charity Commission will investigate. That process needs to happen,’ they said.
Sentebale and the Sussexes have been approached for comment.