Crusade against the tabloids Prince Harry's last battle?
Prince Harry has already testified in court in his lawsuit against the publisher of the Daily Mirror. (archive picture)
Image: dpa
Harry blames the paparazzi for the tragic accidental death of his mother, Princess Diana. (archive picture)
Image: dpa
For years, Prince Harry has led a veritable crusade against the tabloid press. (archive picture)
Image: dpa
Prince Harry has already testified in court in his lawsuit against the publisher of the Daily Mirror. (archive picture)
Image: dpa
Harry blames the paparazzi for the tragic accidental death of his mother, Princess Diana. (archive picture)
Image: dpa
For years, Prince Harry has led a veritable crusade against the tabloid press. (archive picture)
Image: dpa
Harry wants to take the stand himself in his lawsuit against the publisher of the Daily Mail. It is already the third case of its kind and probably the last. What's driving him?
19.01.2026, 06:25
19.01.2026, 15:00
dpa
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- Prince Harry is once again taking legal action against the British tabloid press.
- In a civil action brought by Harry, pop star Elton John and other celebrities over alleged spying by the publisher of the Daily Mail, the trial begins today in London.
- Harry and his co-plaintiffs accuse the publisher Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL) of having commissioned illegal research methods.
- Harry is expected to be present in person in the courtroom during the first week.
Prince Harry (41) is once again taking legal action against the British tabloid press. In a civil action brought by Harry, pop star Elton John (78) and other celebrities over alleged spying by the publisher of the Daily Mail, the trial begins today in London.
Harry is expected to be present in person in the courtroom during the first week. According to a media report, the younger son of King Charles III (77) will take the stand himself on Thursday. The trial is scheduled to last a total of nine weeks.
Harry and his co-plaintiffs accuse the publisher Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL) of having commissioned illegal research methods. The publisher denies all the allegations.
Bugs in homes and cars?
According to the plaintiffs, journalists allegedly commissioned private detectives to plant bugs in the homes and cars of their alleged victims in order to find material for headlines. In addition, telephone conversations are said to have been tapped and medical records and bank details illegally accessed. All of this is alleged to have taken place between 1993 and 2011.
This is the third lawsuit of this kind for Harry. He has already successfully sued the publisher of the "Daily Mirror" and agreed a settlement with the publisher of the "Sun".
Harry leads a veritable crusade
He has already taken the witness standin the trial against the Mirror publishing house - an extremely unusual occurrence for a member of the British royal family. The royals avoid such appearances in order to avoid unintentionally revealing even more of their private lives. The motto in the palace is therefore: "Never complain, never explain".
But the prince, who broke away from the inner circle of royals in 2020 and lives in the USA with his wife Duchess Meghan (44) and their two children, has been leading a veritable crusade against the tabloid press for years. According to his own statements, he wants to show that the illegal methods were systematic.
But this could well be the last battle: On the one hand, Harry has dragged the biggest papers to court with this and largely exhausted the potential for legal action. On the other hand, there is also speculation that he could initiate a reconciliation with his father.
Harry's relationship with his father was long regarded as broken, although there has recently been an initial rapprochement. Harry paid Charles a visit at Clarence House in London in September 2025. According to reports, father and son had not seen each other for around a year and a half - the meeting was therefore a minor sensation.
A scandal broke in 2011
It is undisputed that some British tabloid journalists did not shy away from illegal methods at the time. Not only celebrities, but also victims of crime and their relatives were targeted by wiretapping and spying. In 2011, there was a scandal involving the weekly newspaper "News of the World", which belonged to the media empire of US businessman Rupert Murdoch. The paper was subsequently discontinued. The publisher later admitted that Prince Harry's phone had been tapped on its behalf.
However, it is questionable whether the plaintiffs will also be successful in the proceedings against ANL. For example, a key witness recanted earlier statements that he had been involved in illegal research methods as a private investigator on behalf of the Daily Mail.
What drives Prince Harry?
Harry has repeatedly made it clear that he blames the accidental death of his mother Princess Diana in Paris in 1997 on the paparazzi who were hot on her and her companions' heels at the time. He hinted several times that he feared his wife Meghan could suffer a similar fate.
He also partly blames the tabloid media, which has followed him at every turn since his childhood, for his and Meghan's departure from the inner circle of the royal family a good five years ago and the rift with relatives on both sides.
