On Tuesday, Britain’s Prince Harry took the witness box to testify against the British press accusing them of intrusion and playing a ‘destructive role’ throughout his life.
The Duke Of Sussex is the first member of the British royal family to appear in court in over a century in a case that he has filed again a well-known tabloid. Harry’s Tuesday appearance at the High Court in London is being termed as necessary and historical.
Harry has accused the publisher of the Daily Mirror of using unlawful techniques on an ‘industrial scale’ to create stories about his life.
In a written testimony filed to the High Court in London, Harry said “the prying eyes of the tabloids” strained his relationship with his former girlfriend Chelsy Davy. He stated that it was “the main factor” in why they decided to call it quits.
In the testimony, Harry stated that the couple met in early 2004 and were in an on-and-off relationship in mid-2010 until they finally broke up. Harry and Chesly’s relationship fueled the tabloid for years.
“Our relationship was long distance for the majority of the time we were together, with Chelsy and I often living in different countries, so we relied on communicating by phone a lot,” Harry wrote. “We, naturally, spoke about all types of personal matters, including all aspects of our relationship and this was often through voicemail. As my girlfriend, I trusted Chelsy with the most private information and vice versa.”
Much of the case against Mirror Group Newspapers focus on details he believed were leaked concerning his relationship with Davu. In his testimony, Harry claimed much of their private conversations throughout their relationship made their way to the newspaper. Harry said that such discussions were obtained via illicit means.
Harry pointed out one article that alleged Davy gave him “a tongue-lashing down the phone” for flirting with another woman at a party. Harry said the details of their phone conversations weren’t attributed to sources. He also mentioned another article that described “an emotional phone call” involving Davy.
Harry said private details about his vacations with Davy were also obtained by the press and recalled how journalists and photographers would arrive at their hotel off the coast of Mozambique before they did.
“I don’t believe that my girlfriend would ever have spoken to a passenger on a plane about our relationship,” Harry noted.
“We could also never understand how private elements of our life together were finding their way into the tabloids, and so our circle of friends became smaller and smaller,” said Harry. “I remember finding it very hard to trust anyone, which led to bouts of depression and paranoia.”
In the process, Harry admitted he cut off ties with friends fearing that they were the sources of the leaks. The case dates from 1996 to 2011.
“I genuinely feel that in every relationship that I’ve ever had – be that with friends, girlfriends, with family or with the army, there’s always been a third party involved, namely the tabloid press,” said Harry.
Harry married actress Meghan Markle in 2018. Davy is now married to Sam Cutmore Scott in 2022. They share a son together. Davy was one of the guests at Harry’s wedding to Markle.
