Prince Harry court case – latest: Coronation Street star claims hair ‘set on fire’ after ‘nasty girl’ narrative
Nikki Sanderson is the latest to take the witness box after Prince Harry’s bombshell testimony earlier this week
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Soap actress Nikki Sanderson said her hair was set on fire by a group of girls after Mirror articles painted her as a “stuck up, nasty, party girl”.
She said in her witness statement: “People would elbow me, push me and, on one occasion, a group of girls even set my hair on fire. This particular incident happened in the toilets of a club and the group of girls had been bothering me all night.
“I had gone to the toilets on my own and I was washing my hands and I smelt burning. I looked down and they had set fire to the back of my hair. Fortunately, I wasn’t wearing any hair product, otherwise, my hair would have gone up in flames.
She added: “It’s because of this narrative created and repeated by MGN that I was stuck up, nasty, rude, promiscuous, and a party girl. It feels like character assassination.”
Meanwhile, the Duke of Sussex has landed back in Los Angeles, after a flying visit to the UK to give evidence in his High Court phone hacking case against Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN).
Ex-Coronation Street star ‘wrongly believed ex-partner sold story of their breakup'
The High Court has been told that former Coronation Street star Nikki Sanderson wrongly believed her partner had sold the story about the end of their relationship to the Sunday Mirror, reports Peter Stubley.
The actress was “angry” after the report about her and Jamie Meakin appeared under the headline “Nikki Dumps Lover: I’m gutted, wails Jamie”, said her and Prince Harry’s lawyer, David Sherborne.
“She thought that Jamie had sold the story,” he said. “When in fact there is no payment to Jamie Meakin in relation to this article.”
What were the key moments in Jane Kerr’s testimony?
With Mirror journalist Jane Kerr’s testimony having come to a close today – and, with it, the evidence in Prince Harry’s case – here are some of the key moments from her time in the witness box:
The paper’s former royal editor and assistant news editor Jane Kerr:
- Defended claims she had commissioned third-parties to gather information for news stories “900 times” while working at the Mirror, stating that she “just made the calls” and that “it just didn’t occur to me to ask” how their information was obtained.
- Denied Mr Sherborne’s suggestion that she “knew” journalists were using dates of birth to pass to private investigators to access people’s voicemails.
- Stated that she has “never asked anyone to do anything unlawful” and that she “did not think there was anything wrong with using “people who were well known to the news desk”, as she “had no reason to suspect that they would be doing anything other than carrying out normal journalistic activity”.
- Admitted that she did not want to attend court on Wednesday, after the court was told that she attempted to avoid giving evidence last week but was “ordered” to attend the trial by the judge.
- Was defended against what MGN barrister Andrew Green claimed was an “ambush” of her in the witness box by his opposite number Mr Sherborne – a charge the judge rejected.
- Said it was “highly unlikely” that the information former Mirror editor Piers Morgan sometimes “injected” into stories had been obtained via phone hacking, and noted that her former boss “took a really genuine interest in royal stories”.
- Rejected the suggestion that Prince Harry was “a highly prized target” for journalists while at Eton, after the royal’s lawyer said two stories about him breaking his thumb and contracting glandular fever were “hardly consistent” with her claim that he and William were “off limits” while they were still at school.
Caroline Flack’s mother praises Prince Harry for taking on ‘horrendous’ press
Here are more comments from Caroline Flack’s mother, Christine, about Prince Harry’s trial against Mirror Group Newspapers.
Appearing on Jeremy Vine’s Channel 5 chat show, the late TV presenter’s mother said: “Carrie was the same in her life, whenever a story appeared in the paper it causes distrust among your friends and your family, she’d say ‘Mum, have you said anything?’
“I think Harry is doing it for everybody ... and I think he’s very brave because he is getting such an awful lot of stick as well, and the people that are reporting on him are the same people he is in court against. So, it’s doubly hard.”
Ms Flack said she herself had been pursued by the paparazzi after her daughter was arrested and later found dead in February 2020 at the age of 40.
She added: “It’s horrendous what the press do, horrendous, and I’m just so pleased he’s doing something about it.”
Opinion | Being namechecked in court by Harry reveals his ignorance about journalism
Our world affairs editor Kim Sengupta writes:
It was a huge surprise to be told that I have been named in the High Court in the trial of Prince Harry against Mirror Group Newspapers. I have had few dealings with the royal family in my lengthy career as a journalist, and what I cover – namely foreign affairs and wars – should not have involved me in this case about alleged phone hacking.
The Sunday People had published a story in May 2005 about a knee injury suffered by Harry, and described complaints by his fellow cadets that the prince was being given “preferential treatment” and was being let off taking part in “gruelling marches”.
Prince Harry told the court that the story must have come from phone hacking, and that its appearance had led to him “worrying [he] couldn’t trust anyone for fear of that it would end up splashed across the tabloids”. So serious was the effect it had on him that it led to “distrust [he] ended up having at Sandhurst with the medical staff”.
Andrew Green KC, who is representing Mirror Group Newspapers, pointed out that a similar story had appeared in The Independent. The story was by me “the respected Independent defence correspondent” - an unexpected compliment, and showed that what was happening at Sandhurst was of public interest.
Our story, which was not very long, did not come from phone hacking. The Independent did not hack Harry’s phone or anyone else’s, and nobody had ever claimed that it had. It came from something that happens all the time in journalism – information from contacts.
I was namechecked in Harry’s case. He doesn’t understand journalism | Kim Sengupta
Kim Sengupta wrote a version of a story Prince Harry claims could only have come through phone hacking. Here, he explains why the Duke of Sussex couldn’t be more wrong
Mirror journalist discusses story about ‘cocaine parties'
Quizzed earlier today by Prince Harry’s lawyer, former Mirror journalist Jane Kerr said the source referred to in a story about Harry and “cocaine ecstasy and GHB parties” may have come from a source who was a contact of Jeff Edwards, the Mirror’s crime reporter.
In her witness statement, Ms Kerr said she was “aware that there was a payment to a confidential source in respect of this article” but added that the source was not one of her contacts.
Ms Kerr denies involvement in voicemail interception or “hacking” and denies instructing private investigators to gather information unlawfully. She said in her statement: “To be accused of such a thing is extremely upsetting.”
Proceedings turn to Coronation Street actor Nikki Sanderson
Prince Harry’s fellow claimant, former Coronation Street actor Nikki Sanderson, is now the focus of today’s proceedings.
Sanderson is bringing a damages claim against MGN over the alleged unlawful gathering of information, including by voicemail interception. In May, the 39-year-old told the High Court that she was “physically assaulted” in the street following “false insinuations” published in articles by MGN.
The details of the exact articles in question have yet to be disclosed.
Sanderson first joined Coronation Street in 1999 as Candice Stowe, recurring character Sarah Platt’s (Tina O’Brien) friend from school. Prior to that, she had appeared in the children’s drama called Children’s Ward.
My colleague Peony Hirwani has more detail in this report:
Who is Nikki Sanderson?
Sanderson is set to testify in hacking trial alongside Prince Harry and three other claimants
Mirror journalist denies schoolboy Harry was ‘highly prized target'
The Mirror’s former royal editor Jane Kerr has rejected the suggestion that Prince Harry was “a highly prized target” for journalists while at Eton, Peter Stubley reports.
The Duke of Sussex’s barrister David Sherborne questioned her in detail about two stories which referred to Harry breaking his thumb aged 16 and catching “kissing disease” glandular fever aged 17.
Mr Sherborne said they were “hardly consistent” with her claim that the princes were “off limits” while they were still at school.
Kerr said the injury story was a follow up of a Press Association story ‘which has effectively been confirmed by the palace.”
She claimed the information that doctors had told Harry not to play football for a few weeks “would have come from the palace”. She rejected the suggestion she would have got the information from a private investigator.
Asked about the kissing story, which was marked “exclusive”, she said: “it was such a long time ago, I was writing hundreds of stories, I don’t remember the background of the story.”
Mr Sherborne said “stories about Prince Harry were a highly prized target”.
Kerr said: “I don’t think that’s true. It wouldn’t have been my decision to run the story, it would have been the editor [Piers Morgan].
Piers Morgan could have ‘injected’ information obtained from voicemails into stories, court told
Peter Stubley reports:
Former Mirror editor Piers Morgan could have “injected” information that he had obtained from voicemails into royal stories, the High Court was told.
David Sherborne, acting for the Duke of Sussex, made the allegation while questioning the newspaper’s former royal correspondent Jane Kerr, as he noted that one story about Harry contained information that did not appear in other reports and references to the the private thoughts of the then-Prince Charles.
“That is information that would precisely have come from people listening to voicemail messages,” the lawyer said, adding: “Mr Morgan may have injected information he obtained from voicemails.”
Ms Kerr replied: “I can’t say he didn’t but I think it would be highly unlikely”, and said that if Morgan contributed to a story she did not know where the information came from.
“He might say he had a been speaking to somebody at the palace,” Kerr said. “He took a really genuine interest in royal stories and the work and would often come over.”
Courtroom sketch shows cross-examination of Mirror journalist
Here is a courtroom sketch of former Mirror journalist Jane Kerr, who has been questioned by Prince Harry’s lawyer David Sherborne once again this morning, with the duke’s fellow claimant, Coronation Street actor Nikki Sanderson, soon to follow.
One journalist has this take on the atmosphere in the High Court today.
Caroline Flack ‘knew phone was being hacked when seeing Prince Harry’, mother says
Caroline Flack “knew her phone was being hacked” at the time she was seeing Prince Harry, the late TV presenter’s mother has claimed, echoing his claims in court yesterday.
Calling the Duke of Sussex “incredibly brave”, Christine Flack said Harry was “doing this for everybody” as he takes on Mirror Group Newspapers over allegations of unlawful information-gathering.
She said: “Carrie was the same [as the duke] in her life – whenever a story appeared in the paper, it causes distress among your friends and your family. She said, ‘Mum, have you said anything?’
“But when she was seeing Harry, she knew her phone was being hacked, so we used to use a different telephone, and I believe they tried hacking our phones as well.”
At yesterday’s hearing, the court heard how the duke grew to suspect his friend Caroline after the pair were photographed by photographers waiting under a car for them at a dinner party, with the pictures appearing in a 2009 story in The People headlined, “Harry’s date with Gladiator star”.
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