Sourcing, suspicion and speculation – terminology that has been frequently explored over the last day and a half as Prince Harry testified in a London courtroom in his lawsuit against a major British newspaper publisher over claims of historic phone hacking.
The Duke of Sussex returned to the witness box on Wednesday, for another grueling showdown with the Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN), who he is suing alongside three other claimants representing dozens of celebrities.
His appearance focused on 33 articles – covering various events over a roughly 15-year period of the duke’s life – published in MGN titles, the Daily Mirror, Sunday Mirror and The People. Prince Harry alleges that the publisher used unlawful methods to produce stories about him and others in his vicinity.
The publisher has denied any illicit acts, with its lawyers arguing that the stories selected to be discussed at trial (out of around 140 articles) could have been sourced through legitimate information gathering means or were already in the public domain. However, MGN has previously admitted and apologized for one instance of unlawful information gathering nearly two decades ago.
Seated once more in the witness box behind several computer monitors where he was able to view documents being methodically picked over, the 38-year-old royal appeared more spirited on Wednesday than a day earlier.
Under the bright lights of the simple court room, the prince largely remained softly spoken but also seemed more confident when responding to questions. At times, he also sparred with Andrew Green, the lawyer representing MGN. The day before he had seemed more measured and took on a more deflective approach with brief, clipped replies.
At one point during Wednesday’s proceedings, while Green was quizzing Harry on his time in the Armed Forces and discussing the issue of public interest, the duke responded sternly asking, “Are you suggesting that while I w