Prince Harry turns to trusted royal aide for charity role, RICHARD EDEN reveals amid Sentable saga

By RICHARD EDEN

Published: 00:00 BST, 1 April 2025 | Updated: 00:22 BST, 1 April 2025

Having felt the need to resign from his own charity, Sentebale, in an increasingly acrimonious row with its chairman, Prince Harry appears to be taking steps to shore up his influence on his only surviving good cause.

I can disclose that the Duke of Sussex’s loyal former aide Nick Loughran has been appointed as a trustee of the Invictus Games Foundation, which Harry set up a decade ago to stage sports events to help injured former servicemen and women.

Invictus confirms the appointment on its website, describing Loughran as a ‘communications specialist and co-founder of Integra, a consultancy focused in communications, reputation management and social impact for businesses and individuals’.

Harry is certainly in need of the ‘reputation management’ skills of Loughran, who was deputy communications secretary to Prince William, Catherine and Harry until 2016, when he joined public relations firm Freuds.

Harry has suffered huge damage to his reputation by the claims of Sophie Chandauka, the chair of Sentebale, who has accused him, among other things, of being responsible for ‘harassment and bullying at scale’ and having a ‘toxic’ brand with his wife, Meghan.

‘Harry knows he can trust Nick,’ a source tells me.

Loughran, 41, was spotted at the Invictus Games in Canada with Harry and Meghan last month.

Prince Harry pictured at the closing ceremony of the Invictus Games at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on February 16

Prince Harry pictured with his loyal former aide Nick Loughran during the Invictus Games in February

The Duke of Sussex and Board Chair Dr. Sophie Chandauka MBE attend a Sentebale reception and panel discussion at The Saxon Hotel in Johannesburg last October

The PR man left his role at the palace three months after I disclosed that he had broken up with the Princess of Wales’s cherished ‘Girl Friday’, Rebecca Deacon, and begun courting Clara Madden, who worked at the time as Harry’s assistant.

He split up with Ms Deaon in 2015 after a two-year relationship. He went on to court and eventually marry Clara.

Sources stressed that his departure was unconnected to his private life.

Ms Deacon left the palace in 2016 and got married to Adam Priestley at the Chapel Royal at St James’s Palace. In 2023, she was awarded the title of Extra Equerry’ by Prince William.

When the Duke and Duchess of Sussex moved to North America, Ms Madden was among those who lost their jobs after the couple resigned all royal duties.

However, she was later hired by Harry and Meghan on a freelance basis to work on charity projects in Britain.

Loughran declines to comment. However, a friend says his appointment was ‘entirely coincidental’ to the problems at Sentebale.

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Prince Harry turns to trusted royal aide for charity role, RICHARD EDEN reveals amid Sentable saga

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