Prince Harry is facing another setback since arriving in the U.K., the latest development in what has already been a turbulent trip.
On July 7, the Duke of Sussex lost his yearslong lawsuit against Associated Newspapers Limited, the publisher of the Daily Mail and the Mail on Sunday.
Harry and six other claimants, including Elton John and Elizabeth Hurley, lost their privacy case against the publisher. The U.K.’s High Court dismissed their claims after finding the claimants had failed to prove their allegations of unlawful information gathering.
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The decision comes as Harry is already navigating renewed scrutiny during his latest visit to Britain.
“Associated Newspapers welcomes today’s judgment, which is an overwhelming victory for the Daily Mail and its journalists, and for a free press generally,” a spokesperson for Associated Newspapers said in a statement.
“This is a magnificent vindication of the Daily Mail’s journalism.”
“For some of the most outrageous allegations made when the case was launched in a blaze of publicity four years ago — placing bugs in people’s cars and homes, listening to calls as they were made and illicitly accessing bank accounts — no credible evidence was ever presented,” the statement read.
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“As we said at the time, these allegations were ‘lurid’ and ‘preposterous,’ and were a fishing expedition by the claimants and their legal teams in a politically motivated campaign to muzzle the free press. The reputations of our decent and hardworking journalists were terribly impugned, and today they have been exonerated. As the judgment clearly shows, every single article was legitimately sourced.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Archewell, which oversees the offices of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, for comment.
Harry and the other claimants sued over alleged privacy violations dating from the early 1990s through the 2010s. They claimed the U.K. tabloids engaged in the “clear, systematic and sustained use of unlawful information gathering” for two decades, according to attorney David Sherborne.
Associated Newspapers denied the allegations, calling them “preposterous.” The publisher said the roughly 50 articles at issue were based on legitimate sources, including acquaintances willing to talk about their famous friends.
Harry previously said private information attributed to “sources” and “friends” fueled his suspicion that people close to him were leaking details to journalists.
“This is a huge setback for Prince Harry, especially since he was the lead claimant among the seven claimants,” royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams told Fox News Digital. “It is also clear that he did not choose his friends and acquaintances wisely.”
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“With his visit already mired in chaos, he won’t elicit public sympathy,” Fitzwilliams warned.
In January, Harry testified in London’s High Court that the coverage made him “paranoid beyond belief” and claimed the outlet wanted to “drive me to drugs and drinking to sell more papers.”
At one point on the witness stand, Harry fought back tears as he spoke about his wife, Meghan Markle. He told the High Court the Daily Mail made Meghan’s life “an absolute misery.”
Harry said the idea that he isn’t entitled to a private life is “disgusting,” adding that the legal fight has been another “horrible experience” for him and his family.
In a witness statement obtained by People magazine, Harry said he decided to pursue legal action after what he described as “vicious” and “sometimes racist” coverage of Meghan following the start of their relationship in 2016. He said the attacks intensified during Meghan’s pregnancy and after the birth of their son, Prince Archie.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped back as senior royals in 2020, citing intense media scrutiny and a lack of support from the palace. They relocated to California.
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The ruling adds to what has already been a turbulent trip to Britain for the Duke of Sussex.
On July 6, Harry’s spokesperson told People magazine that an offer for the Duke of Sussex to stay at Buckingham Palace during his London visit was withdrawn after he had formally accepted it.
However, palace sources disputed that account, saying Harry failed to respond by the deadline and that his later acceptance came only after arrangements could no longer be made.
Harry had also hoped to bring his wife and their two young children to Britain for the first time since 2022. But after learning the family would receive police protection only while on royal property — and not throughout the visit — it was reported on July 4 that Harry decided they would not accompany him.
On July 6, the prince arrived alone in the U.K. He is expected to be there through July 11. It is unclear whether he will meet with his father or whether his family will join him later in the week.
Harry has also been denied restoration of taxpayer-funded security by the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures (RAVEC).
People magazine reported that Harry’s team spent several days exploring ways to make the visit safe through enhanced private security arrangements. Palace sources claimed Harry initially declined the invitation to stay at a royal residence before accepting it on Saturday.
Harry has launched a series of lawsuits against the British press in recent years. He and Meghan previously received a symbolic £1, or $1.36, in damages from the Mail on Sunday after winning Meghan’s legal case against the paper for publishing a personal letter she wrote to her father, Thomas Markle, in 2018.
