Celebrity injunction: Scottish newspaper breaks court order and names high-profile couple

The Scottish paper, which cannot be named, has published the names on its front page and included details of the case

The individual is reported to have had a 'three-way sexual encounter' with another couple over four years ago (Getty Images)

A Scottish newspaper has published the identities of a celebrity couple who took out an injunction to prevent the press from printing details about an alleged affair.

The affair has been the topic of growing speculation in recent weeks. The couple’s identities were revealed in an American paper last week and then repeated in international publications and disseminated across social media.

The Scottish paper, which cannot be named for legal reasons, has published the names on its front page and included details of the case.

The newspaper is legally entitled to publish the identities of the couple because the appeal court order only applies in England and Wales, but it cannot name the couple online.

The individual, who is referred to by the initials PJS and described as a “well-known” public figure, claimed that his right to “private and family life” overrides an English tabloid’s right to publish an article about his extra-marital affair or open relationship with his partner.

The individual is reported to have had a “three-way sexual encounter” with another couple over four years ago.

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This is the first injunction to reach the Court of Appeal for five years and is expected to trigger the latest wave of legal disputes between celebrities and the press over privacy injunctions.