Prince Harry has spoken publicly for the first time about one of his many legal battles against the tabloids, saying his experience with the British press led to “a lot of I guess, paranoia, fear, worry, concern, distrust in the people around you.”
Speaking in upcoming documentary “Tabloids On Trial,” which is set to air in the U.K. on ITV (and streamer ITVX) on July 25, the British royal speaks about his case against Mirror Group Newspapers. Last December a judge ruled “extensive” phone hacking had taken place in relation to Harry and awarded him £140,600 ($180,000) to cover his “hurt.”
In the documentary Harry describes the judge’s ruling as a “’monumental victory.” “To go in there and come out and have the judge rule in our favour was obviously huge,” he says. “But for him to go as far as he did with regard to, you know, this wasn’t just the individual people. This went right up to the top…this was lawyers, this was high executives. And to be able to achieve that in a trial that’s a monumental victory.”
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Speaking about one of the headlines dissected during the trial, referencing the prince’s then girlfriend Chelsy Davy, Harry said: “’Harry’s Girl to Dump Him’ – seems as though they knew something before I even did.”
“I think there’s a lot of I guess, paranoia, fear, worry, concern, distrust in the people around you, clearly a headline like that has absolutely no public interest whatsoever,” Harry continues. “There’s a big difference between what interests the public and what is public interest, so what happens in my private life between myself and [my] then girlfriend is exactly that, between us.”
When asked whether the hacking made Harry paranoid, he replies: “I think paranoia is a very interesting word because yes, then it could be paranoia, but then when you’re vindicated it proves that you weren’t being paranoid. You know, same with my mother.”
“You know, there is evidence to suggest that she was being hacked in the mid-nineties, probably one of the first people to be hacked and yet still today, the press, the tabloid press very much enjoy painting her as being paranoid. But she wasn’t paranoid, she was absolutely right of what was happening to her. And she’s not around today to find out the truth.”
Harry has also filed suits against News Group Newspapers (publishers of The Sun) and Associated Newspapers (publishers of the Daily Mail) in the past few years.
Harry also tells the documentary that his determination to fight the tabloids has destroyed his relationship with his family. “That’s certainly a central piece to it,” he explains. “But, you know, that’s a hard question to answer because anything I say about my family results in a torrent of abuse from the press….I’ve made it very clear that this is something that needs to be done. It would be nice if we, you know, did it as a family. I believe that, again, from a service standpoint and when you are in a public role, that these are the things that we should be doing for the greater good. But, you know, I’m doing this for my reasons.”
“I think everything that’s played out has shown people what the truth of the matter is. For me, the mission continues, but it has, it has, yes. It’s caused, yeah, as you say, part of a rift.”
In response to the documentary, Mirror Group Newspapers say: “We welcomed the judgment in December 2023 that gave the business the necessary clarity to move forward from events that took place many years ago. Where historical wrongdoing took place, we apologise unreservedly, have taken full responsibility and paid compensation.”
