Prince Harry has called out a TV star after being awarded further ‘substantial’ damages in his phone hacking claims against the publisher of the Daily Mirror.
Prince Harry slammed Piers Morgan after he reached a settlement with the publisher Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN), who are paying the Duke of Sussex the damages and the costs of the claim. The royal’s barrister said this payment will include an interim payment towards the costs of $500,000.
The 39-year-old said the former Mirror editor, Piers Morgan, “knew perfectly well” phones were being hacked in a statement outside the High Court, read by his barrister David Sherborne.
He added: “In light of this, we call again for the authorities to uphold the rule of law and to prove that no one is above it. That includes Mr Morgan, who as editor knew perfectly well what was going on, as the judge held.
“His contempt for the court’s ruling and his continued attacks ever since demonstrate why it was so important to obtain a clear and detailed judgment.”
However, journalist and presenter Morgan hit back on X (Twitter).
He wrote: “I totally agree with Prince Harry that ruthless intrusion into the private lives of the Royal Family for financial gain is utterly reprehensible… and I hope he stops doing it.”
Morgan is referring to the prince’s bombshell autobiography which came out in January last year, called Spare. The title refers to the Duke being the ‘spare heir’ to the throne, as he is currently fifth in line to being head of the monarch, with his brother Prince William first in line following King Charles, the current monarch.
A judge ruled at the same court in December Mr Morgan knew about and was involved in phone hacking when he was editor of the Daily Mirror. The Duke was awarded damages of $176,000 against MGN.
The TV star, who famously walked off-set live on air after ripping into Harry’s wife Meghan Markle after their Oprah Winfrey tell-all interview, responded to the ruling outside his home in London.
He said: “I want to reiterate, as I’ve consistently said for many years now – I’ve never hacked a phone or told anybody else to hack a phone. And nobody has produced any actual evidence to prove that I did.”
He also alleged the prince was trying to “destroy the British monarchy”, following strong allegations from Meghan and Harry that concerns were raised over their son, Archie’s, skin color before he was born. In the interview with celebrity pal Oprah, both of the royals claimed a member of The Firm had made the comments when Meghan wasn’t there. However, they denied to name who it was, with the billionaire reporter later clarifying it was not Prince Philip or Queen Elizabeth II at the time.
Following the allegations, Buckingham Palace released a rare statement detailing they would deal with the issues as a family, and Prince William told reporters the were very much ‘not a racist family’.
In his statement on Friday, Harry said his case uncovered the shocking “dishonest way” the Daily Mirror acted for stories “for so many years. He called the judgement and settlement “extremely damaging”. He vowed his “mission continues” amid several ongoing legal battles against the UK tabloid media.
It comes after a trial last summer, where he was the first royal to step into the witness box. The judge found that 15 out of 33 articles under consideration had been the product of unlawful information gathering.
The court previously found phone hacking became “widespread and habitual” at MGN titles in the late 1990s. Mr Justice Fancourt said MGN should pay “generic” legal costs to more than 100 people currently involved in legal action.
An MGN spokesperson said: “We welcomed December’s judgment 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.”
They added: “We are pleased to have reached this agreement, which gives our business further clarity to move forward from events that took place many years ago and for which we have apologised.”
