UPDATE 01/21/26 at 3:50 PM ET — After taking the stand, Prince Harry provided a list of people with whom he was in “regular contact” during the time period specified in the lawsuit.
Harry listed his brother, Prince Williamand sister-in-law Princess Kate Middleton in the witness statement, according to people.
The lawsuit covers events from 1996 to 2014, but since then the Duke of Sussex has been estranged from William, 43, and Kate, 44, amid family tension.
The original story continues below:
How Prince Harry took the stand in his latest legal bid against British tabloid publications, revealed how the ordeal has affected his wife. Meghan Markle.
“Standing up here and taking a stand against them, that has continued to haunt me,” Harry, 41, said as he neared tears in his witness statement on Wednesday, January 21, he said. people. “And they have made my wife’s life an utter misery, Lord.”
Harry and several other high-profile plaintiffs filed a lawsuit against Associated Newspapers in 2022, claiming that the editors of Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday i Mail online they have invaded his privacy.
“These individuals have become aware of compelling and very distressing evidence that they have been victims of disgusting criminal activity and serious privacy violations by Associated Newspapers.” said a press release at that time. “These people have been the subject of public interest throughout their careers and personal lives. They are united in their desire to live in a world where the press operates freely, but with accountability. A press that represents the truth is indeed achieved and can be trusted to operate ethically and in the interests of the British people.”
Chris Jackson/Getty Images Prince Harry reflected on his phone hacking lawsuit against Mirror Group Newspapers in the ITV documentary Tabloids on Trial, revealing how it has affected his wife Meghan Markle’s ability to travel to the UK “It’s still dangerous, and it only takes one lone actor, one person who reads these things (…)
Harry and Meghan, 44, have it Lived in Montecito, Californiathroughout the legal battle. (The couple, who share son Prince Archie, 6, and daughter Princess Lilibet, 4, left England in 2020 when they stepped back as members of the royal family.)
“Over the course of this litigation, (media coverage) has only gotten worse, not better,” Harry added in his testimony Wednesday. “It’s fundamentally wrong to put us through all this again. What’s required is an apology and some accountability. It’s a horrible experience.”
After appearing in court, Harry explained why he got involved in the legal battle.
“In late 2016, when my relationship with Meghan, my now wife, became public, I became increasingly concerned about the approach of not taking action against the press following persistent attacks, harassment and intrusive, sometimes racist, articles about Meghan,” Harry said in his testimonial letter, obtained by people “The situation got worse when she became pregnant and after our son, Archie, was born.”
Prince Harry arrives at court on Wednesday, January 21.
Leon Neal/Getty ImagesThe couple has been candid about facing public scrutiny throughout their relationship.
“I regret believing that because I think that if I had actually seen that this wasn’t happening, I could have done more,” Meghan told the couple. Explosive interview from CBS in 2021. “I guess I didn’t have to see it. I didn’t have to know. And now, because we’re actually on the other side, we’ve actually not only survived, but we’re thriving.”
Harry, who has distanced himself from other members of the royal family, has since sought a more private life with Meghan in California.
“Harry is so happy living in the private world,” a source said explained exclusively Us Weekly earlier this month. “Even though he was raised (as a royal), he was never comfortable in that environment. He feels more like himself here. He had this crazy schedule and he was coming back through the palace gates and he couldn’t go out or have a personal life.”
Harry is also involved in many other legal battles to ensure that his family has the right level of security whenever they return to the UK The Duke of Sussex scored a victory in this case earlier this month, meaning he will be eligible for armed security protection.