Prince Harry has launched a shocking attack on Piers Morgan.
The Duke of Sussex has appeared at the High Court today (June 6) to testify in the phone hacking trial.
In his witness statement, which was released pubicly when the hearing began, Harry has singled out Piers in his attack on the “vile” tabloid press. Prince Harry appeared in court today to give evidence against MGN, the publisher for the Daily Mirror, Sunday Mirror and Sunday People. As the former editor of the Daily Mirror, Piers Morgan has been mentioned in the trial.
Prince Harry slams Piers Morgan
Prince Harry has alleged that around 140 articles published betweeen 1996 and 2010 contained information gathered using unlawful methods. The High Court are currently considering 33 of these. He has accused the press of hacking his phone as far back as when he was a teenager.
Appearing in the witness stand, the Duke of Sussex became the first senior royal to give evidence in court since Edward VII in 1891.
In his witness statement, which has now been made public, Harry today slammed the “utterly vile” tabloid press. He also hit out at Piers. Harry accused the presenter of a “barrage of horrific personal attacks”.
He said: “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.”
What else did Harry say?
He went on to make singular mention of Piers, saying: “The thought of Piers Morgan and his band of journalists earwigging into my mother’s private and sensitive messages (in the same way as they have me) and then having given her a ‘nightmare time’ three months prior to her death in Paris, makes me feel physically sick. And even more determined to hold those responsible, including Mr Morgan, accountable for their vile and entirely unjustified behaviour.”
He added: “Unfortunately, as a consequence of me bringing my Mirror Group claim, both myself and my wife have been subjected to a barrage of horrific personal attacks and intimidation from Piers Morgan. Presumably in retaliation and in the hope that I will back down. Before being able to hold him properly accountable for his unlawful activity towards both me and my mother during his editorship.”
‘I’m not going to take lectures from Prince Harry’
MGN contest Prince Harry’s claims that they gathered information unlawfully.
Piers himself has also previously appeared unfazed by the Prince’s allegations. In an interview last month, he bluntly warned that he was “not going to take lectures on privacy invasion from Prince Harry”.
He shot back at Harry that he himself had “spent the last three years ruthlessly and cynically invading the royal family’s privacy for vast commercial gain”.
Piers refuted any suggestion that he should apologise. He insisted that instead it should be Prince Harry apologising.
“I suggest that he gets out of court and apologises to his family for the disgraceful invasion of privacy that he has been perpetrating,” he said.
ED! have contacted reps of Piers Morgan for comment on this story.
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