PRINCE Harry is heading off on a lads’ holiday with some of his closest mates.
The prince is marking his 40th birthday on Sunday with family and friends at his £11million mansion in California.
He will then jet off for a “weekend getaway” with a few close friends, The Sun revealed last night.
It is not yet known where Harry will go or who will join him on the trip.
But the group is unlikely to include his brother William – as he and Harry have not spoken for more than two years.
And Harry’s wife Meghan and children Archie and Lilibet will stay at home while he heads off with his mates.
The band of brothers could include Harry’s polo BFF, his “second dad” and a “party animal” pal.
Here’s a guide to some of the close mates who could join Harry on his lads’ holiday.
The guest list may include Argentinian polo player Ignacio ‘Nacho’ Figueras.
Nacho is a close friend who joined Harry on a trip to Japan last year.
Arguably the most famous polo player in the world, Figueras and Harry have been friends for many years.
They have played in numerous charity matches together, as recently as April of this year.
The former Ralph Lauren model was once named the second most handsome person in the world by Vanity Fair readers, and has been dubbed “the David Beckham of polo”.
Nacho, who attended Harry and Meghan’s wedding with his wife Delfina Blaquier, has previously opened up on his friendship with the Prince, admitting they are in contact a lot.
He told Hello: “It’s always great to be with him and doing something we love, which is playing polo.
“We speak very often, which is amazing to be able to have a friendship that feels like – sometimes we’re not together-together – so it’s always a good thing to be able to share that with someone.”
Tom “Skippy” Inskip is one of Harry’s oldest friends, having met when they were both at Eton.
The son of Owen Inskip, a friend of King Charles and David Cameron, Tom was known as Harry’s “wingman” in their youth, often accompanying him to nightclubs and on holiday.
He was even the organiser of the infamous Vegas bash.
However, while Harry and Meghan both went to Tom’s wedding to Hon Lara Hughes-Young in 2017, Tom didn’t make the cut for Harry and Meghan’s evening party at Frogmore House on their big day.
In their book Finding Freedom, Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand revealed how Tom believed it to have been punishment for voicing his concerns over their relationship.
And he apparently made his feelings clear at a brunch the next day, after not being invited.
Omid and Carolyn wrote: “Skippy told friends ‘Meghan has changed Harry too much.’ His Eton friend said the prince was awed by the likes of the Clooneys and Oprah.
“‘We’ve lost him,’ Skippy concluded.”
They revealed how Tom had warned Harry he and Meghan were moving too quickly, which “came from a good place,” but Harry “didn’t totally see it that way.”
Their rift has since reportedly healed following the sad death of Tom’s mother-in-law.
Harry’s former wingman Charlie van Straubenzee is one of baby Archie’s godparents.
The pair had first met at Ludgrove Prep School in Berkshire, becoming close and they attended the Rugby World Cup together in 2015.
Charlie, an investment executive, was among the 600 guests invited to Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s wedding at Windsor in 2018.
He gave a cheeky toast poking fun at the duke’s ginger hair.
Meghan, 37, and Harry, 34, attended Charlie’s wedding to Daisy Jenks in Frensham, Surrey in May in 2018.
JJ Chalmers appeared alongside Harry in his Invictus Games documentary for Netflix.
The two pals were filmed hiking together near Harry’s Montecito mansion.
Chalmers suffered life-threatening injuries while serving with the Royal Marines in Afghanistan.
He became captain for Team GB’s trike cycling at the first event in 2014 – scooping a gold medal.
Chalmers has since worked alongside Harry as an Invictus Games Foundation trustee.
Guy Pelly is a childhood friend of both Prince William and Harry.
The 34-year-old aristocrat formerly ran a string of London nightclubs including Royal-favourite Mahiki in Kensington as well as Public, Whisky Mist and Tonteria.
In 2016, Guy ran the London Marathon in memory of his late school friend Henry van Straubenzee who was killed in a car crash outside the Prince’s Berkshire school – he raised over £5,000 for children in Uganda.
Guy graduated from Newcastle University with a degree in land management and is married to Holiday Inn heiress Lizzy Wilson.
As the son of Princess Diana’s close friend Lady Carolyn Herbert, Guy has been in the Princes’ lives since they were children.
Once dubbed a “party animal”, Guy famously dressed up in a Nazi soldier costume with Prince Harry in 2005.
He also organised Prince William’s 2011 stag do before his wedding to Kate Middleton.
Army veteran Dave Wiseman also appeared alongside Harry in his Invictus Games documentary for Netflix.
They were filmed hiking with JJ Chalmers in the California hills near Harry’s pad.
Wiseman captained Team GB’s swimmers at the tournament in 2016 for injured veterans – clinching 14 medals.
He later joined the team organising the games – joking “No one wants to see me in my Speedos anymore”.
He also attended the Service of Thanksgiving marking the 10th anniversary of the games at St Paul’s Cathedral on May 8.
Wiseman was shot in the chest in 2009 and left the Army in May 2013 – just a fortnight before he met Harry.
Harry’s childhood friend Nicky Scott appeared alongside him in the Netflix docuseries about the prince and Meghan.
Nicky first met Harry when they were just 13 at Eton College in Windsor.
In the documentary, Nicky said: “We were actually the rooms next door to each other.
“We could lean out of the window and talk after lights out.”
Nicky helped console Harry after the death of his mum Princess Diana in a car crash when the prince was aged just 12.
He said: “I think, as a young kid, you don’t have the language to necessarily have complicated mental health chats beyond ‘How are you’ and ‘Fine’.
“And maybe as well you probably veer away from having that discussion because it’s such an emotional hot potato.”
Nicky went to Leeds University to study management and the history of art.
In 2022 he took a six-month course in sustainable supply chain management at the University of Cambridge.
Nicky is the CEO of Pollinium, a green tech firm working to revive forests in Indonesia.
A former Welsh Guards officer and equerry to the King, Dyer was a mentor to Harry and William after their mum Diana’s death in 1997.
Dyer is one of the few palace insiders still in touch with the Sussexes – after his son Jasper was a page boy at their wedding.
In his memoir Spare, Harry writes: “Of all Pa’s people there was consensus that Marko was the best.
“The roughest, the toughest, the most dashing.”
Harry recounted how Charles sent Dyer to Eton to “find out the truth” about whether he had been taking drugs.
They have stayed friends ever since, with Dyer helping Harry run his Sentebale charity.
The prince lists Dyer among his “friends and colleagues” in Spare’s acknowledgements section.
