Prince Harry’s feud with Sophie Chandauka ‘started with’ Meghan Markle as she never liked Sentebale chair

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Prince Harry’s feud with Dr Sophie Chandauka started with the simple fact that the Duke of Sussex’s wife, Meghan Markle, has never liked the Sentebale chair, shared a source recently. 

Speaking to The US Sun, an insider revealed that the primary source of discontent was a “rude” Meghan not warming up to the Sentebale chairperson. 

The trouble surrounding Sentebale became public when Prince Harry unceremoniously resigned from the charity he co-founded with Prince Seeiso of Lesotho in 2006, honoring their respective late mothers. 

Harry and Seeiso cited an “untenable situation” between chairwoman Dr Chandauka and the board of trustees as the reason for their decision.

Meghan Markle and Sophie Chandauka never warmed up to each other

Accusing the Duchess of Sussex of being at the center of the discontent, the source shared, “The problem, though, started with Meghan — Meghan doesn’t like Sophie," per Page Six.

The insider went on to reveal that the ‘Suits’ star chose not to mingle with Dr Chandauka when she appeared at the charity’s Royal Salute Polo Challenge in Florida in April 2024.

While she was previously accused of attending the event unannounced, the source shared that instead of expanding her acquaintance with the Zimbabwean corporate finance lawyer, Meghan chose to drink champagne with her friend, tennis champion Serena Williams. 

Dr Chandauka revealed in an interview with Sky News last week that the former actress appeared unannounced at the polo event after previously saying that she would not attend.

The insider, however, shared, “She [Dr Chandauka] wanted to take her around, to introduce her to other people, but Meghan didn’t want to mingle or engage with those supporting the event.”

“She went off to the tent. Sophie found it rude. Staff working that day were asked to get champagne for Meghan, they were scrambling around — Sentebale and Archewell staff were both having to do that,” claimed the source before declaring, “Sentebale were not happy about this at all.”

Moreover, a tense exchange between Meghan and Chandauka was noticed in a video that has since gone viral on the internet. 

The video showed the As Ever founder repeatedly asking the Sentebale chair to move her position on the presentation stage, while urging her to stand beside her, instead of standing beside Harry for a photo-op. 

The former actress was seen asking the charity chair repeatedly, “You want to come over here?” as she motioned Dr Chandauka to stand beside her. 

Her repeated requests made Dr Chandauka duck under the trophy to switch her position, which prompted Meghan to say “Lovely” as they posed for the photo.

Sophie Chandauka did not want Sentebale to become an extension of the Sussexes

Following a media frenzy, Prince Harry reportedly asked the charity chair to issue a public statement in support of his wife, which Dr Sophie Chandauka denied. 

Speaking to Sky News, she explained, “I said I wouldn’t. Not because I didn’t care about the duchess, but because I knew what would happen if I did so, number one,” before continuing, “And number two, because we cannot be an extension of the Sussexes.”

Nevertheless, a  source close to the former trustees of the Sentebale charity told the same outlet that Dr Chandauka’s account of the event was “highly misleading".