Prince Harry says publisher’s actions left him paranoid
Prince Harry told the court it was “disturbing to feel like my every move, thought or feeling was being tracked” so the Daily Mail’s publisher could “make money off of it”.
Harry, also known as the Duke of Sussex, is among a group of seven high-profile plaintiffs who have accused the Daily Mail’s publisher of violating their privacy by using illegal doxxing tactics to surreptitiously spy on them for sensational headlines.
Harry, Elton John and actors Elizabeth Hurley and Sadie Frost and others allege Associated Newspapers Ltd hired private detectives to bug their cars, seize their private records and eavesdrop on their phone calls.
Lawyers acting for the plaintiffs said ANL “knew they had skeletons in their closets” while flatly denying all allegations of unlawful practices.
In a written submission on behalf of Harry, barrister David Sherborne said ANL’s information-gathering methods had left him “incredibly paranoid” and put “immense strain” on personal relationships.
Harry, who is expected to give evidence on Thursday, appeared in person at the Royal Courts of Justice on Monday to follow the proceedings.
Sherborne said the illegal collection of information alleged in the Duke’s case related to 14 articles between 2001 and 2013.
Sherborne’s submissions include Harry’s words: “I find it deeply disturbing that Associated uses ‘sources’, ‘friends’ and similar terms as a means to disguise illegal information gathering.”
The lawyer continued: “The Duke of Sussex has suffered great distress from every part of the illegal information collected against him by or on behalf of Associated, and from the fruits of that illegal information collection collected in the 14 illegal items about which he complained.”
He added: “It is clear from the Duke of Sussex’s articles and evidence that his targeting had a profoundly distressing impact, with incidents of illegal doxxing described as ‘disturbing to feel like my every move, thought or emotion was being tracked and watched just for the Mail to make money’, ‘the intrusion (was) frightening’ for loved ones, creating ‘huge tension’ on personal relationships whilst also ‘creating’ jealousy, distrust and suspicion’ and ‘me’ “It’s making me paranoid beyond belief, it’s isolating me.”
In their written submissions in response to Harry’s allegations, ANL said: “At all significant times, the Duke of Sussex’s social circle was known and a good source of leaks or disclosures of information to the media about what he was doing in his private life.”
ANL’s Antony White KC said that the duke’s private life was discussed in the media, and palace spokesmen also gave information about his life.
White said it was “a striking feature of the case that none of the articles were the subject of the plaintiffs’ complaint at the time of publication.”
In his written statement to the court, he said that the celebrities who sued had “leaky” social circles and that all the allegations were made too late.
He said: “In connection with almost any article that purports to be the product of phone hacking or wiretapping, Associated may call a witness or witnesses to explain how the article actually originated.”
Sherborne told the court the broadcaster had adopted the principle of “hear no evil, see no evil, defend no evil”.
The trial at London’s High Court is expected to last nine weeks and Harry is scheduled to return to the witness box for the second time since 2023, when he made history by becoming the first senior member of the royal family to give evidence in more than a century.
Harry waved cheerfully to reporters and said “good morning” as he entered the courthouse through a side entrance.
He sat next to Hurley and Frost in the back row of the courtroom.
The hearing comes as Harry tries to repair his damaged relationship with his family since moving to the United States and burning the bridge behind him by backing up his 2023 memoir and airing other family grievances in a Netflix series.
with AP
