London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Sep 28, 2025

Prince Harry: Mirror publisher phone hacking trial explained

Prince Harry: Mirror publisher phone hacking trial explained

A High Court trial in which Prince Harry will give evidence against a newspaper publisher is under way.

The long-awaited case alleges that the publisher of the Mirror illegally gathered information on the Duke of Sussex and a number of other celebrities to generate stories.


What is this case about?


The High Court is hearing a seven-week long trial into allegations from Prince Harry and others that their phones were hacked by journalists from Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN).

The Duke of Sussex will give evidence in person in June - meaning he will be the first senior member of the Royal Family in modern times to appear in court and be cross-examined.


What do the claimants mean when they allege phone hacking?


The allegations concern stories dating back, in some instances, more than 20 years.

The claimants [those who believe their phones were hacked] allege that journalists from the Daily Mirror, Sunday Mirror and The People newspapers obtained private and confidential information about their lives through a variety of illegal means.

They believe that journalists exploited a (now-closed) gap in the security of mobile phones which allowed them to access the voicemail of their targets. By listening to messages left by friends and family, they were able to find out about the lives of the people they wanted to write about.

Journalists also allegedly used private investigators to trick others into handing over confidential information about the targets - everything from financial details to medical information.

For example, Prince Harry says there is evidence that reporters and photographers used a variety of techniques to follow the movements of his former girlfriend Chelsy Davy.

The claimants say there was no justifiable public interest in their targeting - it was simply "wrongdoing for cynical commercial reasons".


Aside from Prince Harry, who else is involved in the case?


Alongside the Duke of Sussex, allegations from three other claimants are being tested: Coronation Street actor Michael Le Vell (real name Michael Turner), Nikki Sanderson; and Fiona Wightman, the ex-wife of the comedian Paul Whitehouse.

The four cases were chosen by the trial judge to help the court set the level of damages Mirror Group Newspapers should pay if the claimants win.

The High Court would then consider other cases from celebrities including the former Girls Aloud singer Cheryl, the estate of George Michael, actor Ricky Tomlinson and former Arsenal and England footballer Ian Wright


What's the evidence ?


At the heart of the trial will be 207 newspaper stories published between 1991 and 2011.

Some 140 of them, dating from 1996 to 2010, were about Prince Harry.

Former Daily Mirror editor Piers Morgan has repeatedly denied involvement in illegal phone hacking


The claimants argue senior executives must have known about unlawful information gathering behind these stories and failed to stop it.

One of the key allegations in the case is that the TV presenter Piers Morgan, editor of the Daily Mirror between 1995 and 2004, knew of illegal activity.

The Duke of Sussex's lawyers want the court to consider a series of incidents which they say are evidence that Mr Morgan not only knew about hacking but told others too.

Mr Morgan has repeatedly denied involvement in illegal phone hacking - but this is the first time that a court will have been asked to rule on allegations about what he knew.


What has MGN said?


Mirror Group Newspapers has previously admitted that phone hacking took place.

In 2015, following allegations made by former Coronation Street actress Shobna Gulati, Mirror Group Newspapers admitted journalists had regularly used unlawful techniques and paid investigators to obtain private information. It issued a public apology.

Mirror Group Newspapers has settled hundreds of claims - the 2015 case saw it pay out £1.25m in damages to eight victims. MGN has set aside £28m to deal with hacking allegations.

However, the company insists the blame cannot be pinned on executives because it says the unlawful activity was deliberately concealed by the journalists.


Weren't hacking allegations settled years ago?


Yes and no. There have been more than 1,000 claims against the owners of The Sun and long-closed News of the World (NOTW), owned by the Rupert Murdoch empire. Some NOTW journalists were jailed in relation to unlawful intrusion.

In 2012, the separate Leveson Inquiry revealed widespread allegations of wrongdoing in the tabloid press - but that investigation was not set up to deal with damages - and so a huge number of cases have rumbled on for more than a decade.

In the coming weeks, the claimants will allege that Mirror Group misled the Leveson Inquiry - something it denies.


Who else is Prince Harry taking action against?


The duke is suing News Group Newspapers (NGN), publisher of The Sun for alleged hacking. Its lawyers are trying to have the case thrown out by arguing that Prince Harry has run out of time to bring it to court. The paper's owners have long admitted hacking took place at the News of the World - but never conceded it happened at The Sun.

Separately, the duke is one of seven people who allege unlawful intrusion by the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday. The newspaper group vehemently denies that allegation.

The future of these cases will be decided later this year.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
Nvidia Pledges Up to $100 Billion Investment in OpenAI to Power Massive AI Data Center Build-Out
U.S. Signals ‘Large and Forceful’ Support for Argentina Amid Market Turmoil
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
Vietnam Faces Up to $25 Billion Export Loss as U.S. Tariffs Bite
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Indonesia Court Upholds Military Law Amid Concerns Over Expanded Civilian Role
Larry Ellison, Michael Dell and Rupert Murdoch Join Trump-Backed Bid to Take Over TikTok
Trump and Musk Reunite Publicly for First Time Since Fallout at Kirk Memorial
Vietnam Closes 86 Million Untouched Bank Accounts Over Biometric ID Rules
Explosive Email Shows Sarah Ferguson Begged Forgiveness from Jeffrey Epstein After Taking His Money
Corrupt UK Politician Ed Davey Demands Elon Musk’s Arrest for Supporting Democracy
UK, Canada, and Australia Officially Recognise Palestine in Historic Shift
Alibaba Debuts Open-Source Deep Research Agent with Benchmarks Rivaling OpenAI
Marcos Faces Legacy-Defining Crisis as Flood Projects Scandal Sparks Massive Tide of Protests
China’s Micro-Drama Boom Turns Stalled Real Estate Projects into Lavish Film Sets
New Eye Drops Show Promise in Replacing Reading Glasses for Presbyopia
'Company Got 5,189 H-1B Visas, Then Laid Off 16,000 Americans': US Defends New $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Golf legend tells Omar she should be 'sent back to Somalia' after her Kirk comments
EU Set to Bar Big Tech from New Financial Data Access Scheme
China Bans Livestreaming and AI in Religion Amid Crackdown on Shaolin Temple Scandal
×