The Duke of Sussex has returned to a court in London for the fourth day of the trial of his legal action against the publisher of the Daily Mail.
Wearing a dark suit and red-and-blue striped tie, Prince Harry arrived at the Royal Courts of Justice for a fourth consecutive day around 10.05am on Thursday, after giving evidence for around two hours in his High Court claim against Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL) on Wednesday.
The duke, 41, is one of seven people, including Sir Elton John, Baroness Doreen Lawrence and Liz Hurley, suing the publisher over allegations of unlawful information gathering. ANL strongly denies wrongdoing and is defending the claims.
Upon arriving, the Duke of Sussex waved and smiled at reporters gathered outside court. One member of the media shouted: "How are you feeling today, Harry?" The duke smiled and replied: "Great, thank you."
Today, he is supporting Elizabeth Hurley, who is expected to give evidence and arrived at court with her son, Damian Hurley. A spokesperson for the duke said on Wednesday evening that he would attend court again on Thursday "to support, and show solidarity with, the other claimants".
The hearing before Mr Justice Nicklin was scheduled to resume at 10.30am, with Hurley expected to give evidence. It is due to conclude in March, with a judgment due in writing at a later date.
Harry's evidence
On Wednesday, Prince Harry gave evidence against ANL, telling the court that the Daily Mail had made his wife, Meghan Markle's life an "absolute misery".
He said the case against ANL felt like a "recurring traumatic experience" and a "repeat of the past", adding: "I have never believed that my life is open season to be commercialised by these people." The father-of-two later added that the "claim that I don't have any rights to any privacy is disgusting".
In his witness statement for the trial, Harry also said he has always had an "uneasy relationship" with the press, adding: "However, as a member of the institution, the policy was to 'never complain, never explain'." He was scheduled to give evidence on Thursday, but opening submissions for the claimants and ANL concluded earlier than expected on Tuesday.
A source close to the Duke of Sussex's claim said ahead of his appearance in the witness box: "ANL, publishers of the Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday and MailOnline, and their legal team, have had months to inform the court that their opening argument would last less than two hours, instead, they have had to resort to game playing and dirty tricks – consistent with the way they have treated not just the Duke but all of the victims in this case."
The source continued: "They think that by pulling the schedule forward 24 hours they are giving Prince Harry less time to prepare – he's been preparing for this moment for the last three years. Safe to say, he's ready."
The trial
The nine-week trial is due to conclude in March, after which a judgment is expected in writing. Those also involved in the case include Sir Elton John, his husband David Furnish, Baroness Doreen Lawrence, Sir Simon Hughes, Sadie Frost and Elizabeth Hurley.
The group claims that the publisher carried out unlawful activities such as hiring private investigators, "blagging" private records and accessing private phone conversations. ANL, which also publishes the Mail on Sunday, has denied the allegations.