High Court to hear Prince Harry’s evidence against Daily Mail publisher

Prince Harry’s long-running legal campaign against the British press is poised for a pivotal moment next week, as his privacy lawsuit against the publisher of the Daily Mail newspaper begins. The Duke of Sussex alleges unlawful actions by Associated Newspapers contributed to his decision to relocate to the United States.

The 41-year-old, King Charles’ younger son, has consistently expressed his deep resentment of the often aggressive tactics employed by British media, a stance frequently linked to the tragic death of his mother, Princess Diana, in a 1997 car crash while being pursued by paparazzi. He has long vowed to hold them accountable.

Prince Harry is one of seven high-profile claimants, including singer Sir Elton John, who are suing Associated Newspapers over years of alleged unlawful behaviour. These accusations range from the bugging of phone lines to the illicit acquisition of personal health records. Associated Newspapers has vehemently denied any wrongdoing, dismissing the allegations as "preposterous smears" and part of a wider conspiracy.

The High Court in London will hear evidence over nine weeks from Prince Harry, Sir Elton John, his husband David Furnish, actors Liz Hurley and Sadie Frost, campaigner Doreen Lawrence, and former British lawmaker Simon Hughes. Prince Harry is scheduled to appear next Thursday, marking his second court appearance in the witness box in three years. In 2023, he became the first British royal in 130 years to give evidence in another lawsuit. Current and former senior Associated staff, including several national newspaper editors, are also expected to be questioned by the claimants’ legal team.

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The stakes are exceptionally high for all parties involved, with not only reputations on the line but also legal costs anticipated to run into tens of millions of pounds. Critics suggest Prince Harry is motivated by bitterness over unfavourable coverage, from his youthful partying to family disputes and his eventual departure from the UK.

However, supporters argue his cause is noble, aimed at challenging what they perceive as immoral media practices. Damian Tambini, an expert in media and communications regulation at the London School of Economics, commented: "He seems to be motivated by a lot more than money. He's actually trying to, along with many of the other complainants, affect change in the newspapers."

Prince Harry and his American wife, Meghan, have previously cited media harassment was one of the main factors for their decision to step down from royal duties and move to California in 2020. Sir Elton John, 77, also has a history of legal battles with the British press, having successfully sued newspapers, including the Daily Mail, for libel. He received a £1 million settlement from The Sun in 1988 following a false allegation.

This case against Associated Newspapers could prove to be Prince Harry’s most significant legal challenge, following successful actions against Mirror Group Newspapers and Rupert Murdoch’s News Group Newspapers (NGN), which resulted in damages, apologies, and admissions of wrongdoing.

The 130-year-old Daily Mail, renowned for championing traditional, conservative values, has long been one of Britain’s most powerful media forces. Unlike the Mirror and NGN, it has not been embroiled in the phone-hacking scandal. The paper asserts it provides a voice for millions in "Middle England," holding the rich, powerful, and famous to account.

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Notably, in 1997, the Daily Mail famously ran a front page denouncing five men accused of the racist murder of Black teenager Stephen Lawrence as murderers, challenging anyone to sue if they disagreed. This case was a defining moment in British race relations.

Despite this, Doreen Lawrence, Stephen’s mother, is now among those suing the Mail, alleging journalists tapped her phones, monitored her bank accounts and phone bills, and paid police for confidential information.

The Associated case is expected to be one of the final court airings of phone-hacking accusations that have plagued the British press for over two decades. The practice of unlawfully accessing voicemails burst into the public consciousness in 2011, leading to the closure of Murdoch’s News of the World tabloid, the jailing of its former editor, and a public inquiry.

Both Murdoch’s NGN and the Mirror Group have since paid out hundreds of millions of pounds to victims of unlawful activity. Should the claimants lose, Tambini suggested, "this could be the moment when phone hacking, finally, as a set of issues, went away."