Prince Harry’s testimony in his lawsuit against The Mail/ANL was completed on Wednesday. Harry was called up a day early because ANL’s lawyer did a much more abbreviated opening statement than predicted, in what was seen as a “dirty trick” to catch Harry off guard. Harry was just fine though – if anything, he seemed to put ANL’s lawyer on his backfoot. What was supposed to be a full day, possibly two days, of cross-examination was completed in two hours, mostly because ANL didn’t want to ask Harry about too many specifics. While I’m sure there’s a possibility Harry could be called back on the stand, it looks like Harry’s part is done. Still, he planned to stay in London for the week, so he turned up in court again on Thursday. He reportedly was there to show support for one of his co-plaintiffs, Elizabeth Hurley:
Prince Harry is showing his support for the other claimants in his case against the publishers of the Daily Mail. The Duke of Sussex, 41, attended the High Court in London on Jan. 22 as actress Elizabeth Hurley gave evidence. Hurley, 60, was pictured ariving at the court with her son Damian, 23, by her side.
On Jan. 22, Harry took a seat in court 76, while Hurley took her place in the witness box shortly after 10:30 a.m. local time and was asked to swear on oath on a Bible to tell “the whole truth.” She was then asked a series of questions by Associated Newspapers’ lawyer, Antony White.
During questioning, Hurley was asked why she hadn’t complained at the time the 15 articles in her claim were published between 2002 and 2011. The model said she hadn’t made complaints because “they were in essence true.” “I believe it’s because people were listening to me speak,” she added.
About half way into her testimony, Hurley became tearful. She had been shown a series of articles — some about her relationship with the late Steve Bing, who is the father of her son Damian —when she broke down and needed to pause. She said she would never say anything publicly that “she didn’t want my son to read.”
In a witness statement submitted to the court, [Hurley] alleged the unlawful acts against her involved “landline tapping my phones and recording my live telephone conversations, placing surreptitious mics on my home windows, stealing my medical information when I was pregnant … and other monstrous, staggering things”.
“Above all, it was the discovery that the Mail had tapped the landlines of my home phones and tape-recorded my live telephone conversations that devastated me,” she said. “I felt crushed.”
ANL has denied any wrongdoing, previously describing the claims as “lurid” and “preposterous”. In written submissions, its legal team said the allegations brought by Hurley were “unsupported by the evidence before the court”.
[From People & The Guardian]
I remember when Sienna Miller sued the Murdoch press, and part of her case involved those tabloids accessing her medical information. They also hacked into her answering machine/voicemail and found out that she’d been having conversations about her pregnancy and abortion. My point? I absolutely believe that the Mail (and probably many other tabloids) went so far as to install bugs in Liz Hurley’s windowsills and, not to mention paying off nurses and doctor’s offices for medical information. It’s really cool that Harry was there to support Liz as well. I’m sure she appreciated that.
PS… It’s insane how Liz is getting regularly mogged by her son Damian. Imagine giving birth to a boy who serves more c–t than you and you’re Liz Hurley!!
Photos courtesy of Getty, Backgrid.
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- London, UNITED KINGDOM Prince Harry was spotted arriving at the Royal Courts of Justice for the fourth day of the high-profile Daily Mail trial, which has attracted widespread attention. Pictured: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex BACKGRID USA 22 JANUARY 2026 BYLINE MUST READ: J.A. / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- London, UNITED KINGDOM Prince Harry was spotted arriving at the Royal Courts of Justice for the fourth day of the high-profile Daily Mail trial, which has attracted widespread attention. Pictured: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex BACKGRID USA 22 JANUARY 2026 BYLINE MUST READ: J.A. / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- London, UNITED KINGDOM Prince Harry was spotted arriving at the Royal Courts of Justice for the fourth day of the high-profile Daily Mail trial, which has attracted widespread attention. Pictured: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex BACKGRID USA 22 JANUARY 2026 BYLINE MUST READ: J.A. / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
Good for Harry always looking out for others!!!
Yes to Harry supporting his fellow claimants! If ANL’s plan was to try and rush through his testimony and hustle him out of the UK quickly so that the coverage would quiet down, then yeah, they are not feeling so great right now.
Do we think the Wales are going to continue posting days-old photos from their day trip to Scotland, or try to get themselves papped cheering on one of the kids’ soccer teams?
Going to the soccer games would be ‘work’ so… I’m guessing year old pictures heavily photoshopped are going to show up.
Harry is a true warrior, a true hero. He looks out for everyone including Caroline Flack. He’s there for her too.
Harry has the rare qualities of incredible intelligence but also resilience in extreme circumstances. Few have that mettle tested and Harry has for decades
Had Harry not been royal, his brilliance would have made him a true colonel/general very high up in the forces (not sure the ranks)
Yes, I think so too!
Good for Harry. He also went to visit Doreen Lawrence at the House of Lords. Apparently they had lunch together. I saw two royal reporters making a big deal about that.
Doreen Lawrence has been to hell and back since her son was killed in a racist murder. The Fail have always boasting of their crusading journalism in championing her cause to bring the killers to justice. She rightly feels betrayed by their hypocrisy and cruelty in putting HER under surveillance when they’re publicly helping her and even now instead of being accountable and apologising they have spent years dragging this out. They are denying responsibility and putting her through the stress of high profile action and giving evidence under oath in court. ANL and their reptiles are beneath contempt and using the legal system to further gaslight and abuse their victims. They deserve to lose this case and then I hope those responsible face criminal action.
I like that she seems to have built a bridge between the articles and the UIG – its not that the articles weren’t true (maybe not 100% true but roughly), and maybe at first you think a friend blabbed or something, because who would think that someone at the DM had tapped their landlines, right? If you went straight to that conclusion people would say you were a crazy conspiracy theorist. And then maybe there’s a story that couldn’t have been obtained any other way, or a story that crosses the line, or years later you hear about this happening to someone else and you realize…..that’s what was, in fact, going on the whole time.
Of course she didnt sue over this in 2001 and claim her phone lines were tapped. people would have accused her of being a hysterical crazy woman. But with hindsight its so clear what was going on.
Just like they did with Diana
I hope this case doesn’t last all 9 weeks bc the defense will struggle so bad then they lose hard.
The trial is estimated to last 9 weeks because each complaintant has around 15 sample articles that are going to be evaluated as to sources and how the information was obtained, lawfully or unlawfully. The different reporters will have notebooks on how they sourced their particular story and will have to give evidence under oath and be cross examined. There is also going to be hotly contested PI evidence. It begins with impact statements as each complaintant has to explain when and how they became aware of suspicion of unlawful sourcing but the bulk of the trial will be how each of the sample articles were sourced. Eg would a chatty friend of Harry actually know the assumed name that was used to book flights and accommodation and then seat and flight details? How did the reporter gain that level of detail? Really if ANL have any shred of decency they will settle this case NOW and not prolong the ordeal for the people they have already damaged. Instead they are adding insult to injury and if perjury under oath is committed then criminal action can follow. How did they obtain Elton John’s son’s birth certificate before the parents?
Baroness Lawrence said she felt she had been targeted as she sought the truth about her son’s murder.
She said she felt she “could not even grieve the injustice of what was happening privately, even for a day” and that she had been made “a victim all over again”.
Her allegations concern five articles published between 1997 and 2007, written by veteran Daily Mail crime correspondent Stephen Wright.
The claims include that he made payments of thousands in cash for “special contacts re Stephen Lawrence” and “special inquiries”, and that he got “well-known blagger” Christine Hart to call Baroness Lawrence pretending to be a journalist from the Guardian, as it was believed she would be more likely to speak to her.
Baroness Lawrence said she was “angry that the Mail seem more interested in interrogating me about how I found out what they did to me… then threatening to question me at trial about all this, rather than saying sorry, investigating what it did, and getting at the truth of what happened”.
This lengthy legal process culminating in a stressful trial demonstrates ANL determination to lie, abuse and avoid accountability. For putting the complainants through additional hell they need to pay a huge sum in compensation and publicly apologise.
These “journalists” are merely thugs with press cards!
I’m in awe and humbled by the tenacity of Prince Harry, and all the other plaintiffs, in taking this all the way. Good for him for showing up for Liz Hurley. I understand where others had to drop out and huge respect to those still fighting. The press is so abhorrent and venal, may this begin justice.
Harry is a prince of a man. Elizabeth looks amazing!
I loved your P.S. about Liz Hurley’s son. You are absolutely correct! Fabulous comment that is so spot-on it makes you laugh. Damian is incredibly gorgeous!