The Duke of Sussex 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.

Harry appeared relaxed as he arrived at court, flashing a smirk at the crowd before patting a member of his team on the back and striding into the building. A swarm of photographers surrounded the entrance alongside curious onlookers, including an artist wielding an off-kilter painting of Harry and wife Meghan Markle on a donkey.

LONDON, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 27: Prince Harry (L) and Meghan Markle during an official photocall to announce the engagement of Prince Harry and actress Meghan Markle at The Sunken Gardens at Kensington Palace on November 27, 2017 in London, England. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been a couple officially since November 2016 and are due to marry in Spring 2018. (Photo by Samir Hussein/Samir Hussein/WireImage)

Over the course of Tuesday and Wednesday, Harry will give evidence as to how unlawful techniques were used to report stories on him between 1996 and 2009.

The case will examine 33 sample articles from Mirror Group Newspapers-owned outlets over the course of that period. The prince is expected to provide facts or compelling circumstantial evidence to support his claims against each of the 33 articles.

“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,” wrote Harry in the statement, dated from February.

Harry also makes specific mention of documents disclosed by Mirror Group Newspapers as part of the case, some of which involved Diana’s private letters to the British TV presenter Michael Barrymore.

The remainder of the extensive document contains Harry’s written evidence as to why each of the 33 articles at the center of the case involved allegedly unlawful reporting techniques.

Harry was cross-examined in court by Andrew Green KC, the lawyer for Mirror Group Newspapers. Asked about the royal’s “hostility” to local media, which Green suggested preceded any alleged unlawful methods of newsgathering by the tabloid press, Harry replied, “I’ve experienced hostility from the press since I was born.”

“Every single article has caused me distress,” Harry added.

Green repeatedly pointed out on Tuesday that stories described in Harry’s case appeared previously in other publications, suggesting that Mirror Group Newspapers outlets were merely following the news cycle with their own versions of a story.

While royals have appeared in court previously — Princess Anne, for example, in 2002 pleaded guilty to failing to prevent one of her dogs from biting a child — Harry’s case marks the first time since 1891 that a senior royal has entered the witness box. (Prince Andrew narrowly escaped testifying himself after settling his sexual assault case with Virginia Giuffre in February 2022.)

Historical Context

In the 19th century, Prince Edward VII, Queen Victoria and Prince Albert’s eldest son, served as witness in lander trial involving a card game. In 1870, he also testified as part of a divorce case where he was falsely accused of being the lover of an MP.