If you weren’t at London’s High Court for Prince Harry’s cross-examination — and the reams of media reports detailing the royal’s responses line by line weren’t enough — don’t worry: Sky News has you covered.
The broadcaster has revealed plans to reconstruct key parts of Harry’s cross-examination on Tuesday with Mirror Group Newspapers lawyer Andrew Green KC.
In a series of special programs this week, reporter Jonathan Samuels will present “Harry in Court,” where an actor will voice significant moments from the prince’s turn in the witness box.
With no cameras or recording allowed in court, Sky News says it will “give audiences an accurate and fair representation of what has happened in court that day, offering greater insight into how a huge case like this unfolds.”
The news outlet last employed reconstructions in 2005 during Michael Jackson’s high-profile criminal trial on charges of child molestation. Prior to that, it used the technique to cover the 2003 Hutton Inquiry, which was a judicial process surrounding the mysterious death of biological warfare expert David Kelly, who had recently been named as a source for a media report.
Prince Harry spent Tuesday providing testimony at London’s High Court, becoming the first senior royal to take the stand in 130 years. He joins three other claimants in accusing the publisher of British tabloid The Daily Mirror of using unlawful methods, such as phone hacking, to secure stories. Mirror Group Newspapers has previously admitted to phone hacking but denies that the technique was used in the instances outlined in the claim. The case is one of five ongoing cases the royal has launched against U.K. media outlets.
In his 55-page witness statement released during Tuesday’s hearing, and seen by PvNew, Harry detailed the role of Britain’s tabloid press in his life. “Despite the common misconception, I was no more than 5% funded by the taxpayer while I was a working Royal in the UK, yet it felt as though the tabloid press thought that they owned me absolutely, and deserved to know everything there is to know about me, my life, my movements and the lives of those people who came into my orbit.”
Jonathan Levy, Sky News executive editor and managing director, said: “This trial and Prince Harry’s fight against the tabloid press has captured the world’s attention. With no cameras in the court, Sky News will offer viewers an accurate and fair reconstruction of what is said and a better understanding of how the case unfolds.”
Sky News notes that it “has long asked for greater transparency of the judicial system and campaigned with other broadcasters to get cameras in court for sentencing of criminal cases which came into place last year.”
A landmark ruling last year now allows broadcasters to film the sentencing of serious criminals, but recording entire trials remains off-limits in the U.K.
