Prince Harry’s costly court defeat will leave King a little smug | Royal | News

It wasn’t the homecoming Harry had hoped for. He claimed that no protection, no bed and no more damage from newspapers “made his wife’s life miserable”.

In fact, it’s been a humiliating week for the Prince so far. Losing his case against Associated Newspapers, publishers of the Mail and Mail on Sunday, must have seemed like a heavy blow for a man who declared himself on a mission to “reform the press”.

In his book Spare he said the press was trying to prove that they were more than just liars, they were law breakers and would see some of them jailed.

Instead, he will likely face staggering costs after a long and futile trial.

Harry can take some solace in the fact that he has had limited success in two previous lawsuits against British newspapers. But it was a comprehensive defeat, and not a single one of the 14 instances of alleged illegal news gathering could be proven.

Will he do anything to mend the rift with his family here?

The King, who once warned his son that covering the press was a “suicide mission”, could be forgiven for feeling a little smug, according to Harry.

If there is to be a meeting between father and son after all, after the ridiculous uproar over whether Harry will bring his family to the UK and where he might lay his angry head, this court decision will only heighten tensions.

Because I don’t think the Prince has changed his view that journalists should “get their joy” by tormenting what he calls “a very big, very old, very dysfunctional family.”

This description of family seems especially apt after what happened this week.