Prince Harry's sad behaviour inside courtroom revealed amid emotional privacy trial
The Duke of Sussex took to the witness box on WednesdayThis week, Prince Harry took to the witness box during a trial in his privacy legal case against the publisher of the Daily Mail.
Harry, along with several other celebrity claimants, is suing Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL) over alleged breaches of privacy.
This week, the Duke of Sussex gave evidence at London’s High Court. He spoke about his experience with the British press.
One royal commentator, who was present in the courtroom, has now weighed in on how the prince came across.
Prince Harry’s privacy trial against Associated Newspapers Limited
Harry, 41, is part of a group of high-profile claimants suing ANL. These include Sir Elton John and his husband David Furnish, campaigner Baroness Doreen Lawrence, politician Sir Simon Hughes, and actors Sadie Frost and Elizabeth Hurley.
They are all bringing legal action against ANL for alleged unlawful information gathering methods.
They claim ANL had written articles based on information, which was gathered unlawfully, like phone hacking, phone tapping and blagging.
The publisher strongly denied the allegations.
Antony White KC, representing ANL, told the court that journalists could prove with given evidence that they used legitimate sources to gather information.
‘Tense and frosty’ atmosphere in courtroom
During the first week of the trial, which began on January 19, Harry has been present in the courtroom.
He was the first witness to be called on day three of the case. Harry faced two hours of questions from the lead barristers for both the claimants and the defendant.
I think he was at that point where he couldn’t control his emotions anymore.
According to ITV’s Royal Editor Chris Ship, the Duke of Sussex appeared angry during the cross examination.
Mr Ship, who was present in the courtroom, told ITV News on Wednesday evening: “It was tense and frosty between [Harry] and the barrister Antony White on behalf of Associated Newspapers Limited from the very outset.
Harry ‘couldn’t control his emotions’ towards the end of testifying
“Harry gave quite a bullish performance. I saw him a few times, he was swinging in his chair almost as if his anger towards Associated Newspapers Limited was seeping out of his body language no matter what his mouth was saying.”
Mr Ship added: “Then you got to the point at the end when he was speaking about Meghan. He knew his evidence was coming to an end. I think he was at that point where he couldn’t control his emotions anymore. That’s when his red went a bit red. He bit his lip and couldn’t hold back the tears.”
Harry’s heartbreaking confession about Meghan
During the court appearance on Wednesday, Prince Harry described the mental impact of press coverage on his wife, Meghan Markle.
On the verge of tears, as reported by PEOPLE from the courtroom, Harry said: “By standing up here and taking a stand against them, this has continued to come after me.
“And they have made my wife’s life an absolute misery, my Lord.”
Read more: Brooklyn Beckham warned over risks of ‘pulling a Prince Harry’ amid family feud
Harry’s legal team has claimed that 14 articles published by ANL between 2001 and 2013 were a product of unlawfully obtained information. They argue that the stories were written in a “highly intrusive and damaging way”.
Meanwhile, according to the BBC, Harry said he “was not allowed to complain”. This was because he was a member of the “institution”, meaning the royal family.
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