‘I’ll read about it in his next book’ – Piers Morgan hits back at Prince Harry’s criticism
Piers Morgan has hit back at Prince Harry after receiving fierce criticism from the royal during his phone hacking trial.
The Duke of Sussex said the thought of the former editor of the Daily Mirror and his “band of journalists” earwigging on his mother’s messages “makes me feel physically sick”.
Morgan told Sky News he didn’t see any of Harry’s comments, but added: “I wish him luck with his privacy campaign and look forward to reading about it in his next book.”
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Harry in court: A reconstruction
Prince Harry‘s comments were written on page 12 of his 55-page witness statement, which claims that 33 articles written by papers owned by the Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN) involved unlawful information gathering by the publisher, including phone hacking.
Prince Harry court case as it happened
The Duke of Sussex wrote: “The thought of Piers Morgan and his band of journalists earwigging into my mother’s private and sensitive messages (in the same way as they have me) and then having given her a ‘nightmare time’ three months prior to her death in Paris, makes me feel physically sick and even more determined to hold those responsible, including Mr Morgan, accountable for their vile and entirely unjustified behaviour.”
Prince Harry arrives at the High Court
Yesterday, the High Court heard of allegations that Princess Diana’s phone was hacked by the paper when it was under Morgan’s supervision from 1995 to 2004.
Prince Harry’s lawyer, David Sherborne, read aloud details of letters she wrote to comedian Michael Barrymore that revealed the pair had secret meetings, and that the Princess was supporting Barrymore who was “struggling with coming out as gay”.
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Analysing Harry’s statement
He said that in Morgan’s book, The Insider, he refers to “rumours” that Diana was “secretly comforting” Barrymore and that he was being treated for alcohol addiction.
Read more:
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The key people named in Prince Harry’s witness statement
In his witness statement – paragraph 42 – Harry writes: “Mr Morgan’s reference to ‘secret’ meetings, I can only assume that this information had been obtained via voicemail interception and/or other unlawful information gathering such as live land line tapping.”
‘Barrage of horrific personal attacks’
Morgan has always denied any involvement in, or knowledge of phone-hacking or other illegal activity, but has very publicly criticised both Harry and his wife, Meghan, in the past.
Later in the statement – paragraph 194 – Prince Harry accuses Morgan of inflicting a “barrage of horrific personal attacks and intimidation” on both him and Meghan.
“Unfortunately, as a consequence of me bringing my Mirror Group claim, both myself and my wife have been subjected to a barrage of horrific personal attacks and intimidation from Piers Morgan, who was the Editor of the Daily Mirror between 1995 and 2004, presumably in retaliation and in the hope that I will back down, before being able to hold him properly accountable for his unlawful activity towards both me and my mother during his editorship,” he wrote.
Morgan’s spokesperson had no comment on Harry’s claims.
Harry and Meghan were criticised by Morgan after their Oprah interview
What has MGN said?
Previously, MGN, now owned by Reach, has admitted its titles were involved in phone hacking, settling more than 600
claims, but its lawyer, Andrew Green KC, has maintained that there was no evidence that Harry had ever been a victim.
As Prince Harry became the first British royal to appear in a witness box in more than a century, Mr Green claimed that his phone could not have been hacked when one of the articles was published as he did not have a mobile phone at the time.
Harry leaving court
He also dismissed the claim that Diana’s voicemails were hacked as “total speculation” and “without any evidential basis whatsoever”.
Proceedings are due to conclude by the end of June, with Mr Justice Fancourt expected to give his written ruling later in the year.
Entertainment
Eurovision says some contestants did not respect ‘spirit of rules’ after controversial competition
The organiser of the Eurovision Song Contest has said it “regrets” that some contestants did not respect the “spirit of the rules” when taking part in the competition in Sweden.
In a statement on Monday, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) said it had spoken to a number of delegations during the event regarding what it referred to as “various issues that were brought to our attention”.
It comes after Ireland’s Bambie Thug said they had raised “multiple complaints” to the EBU in the build up to the grand finale in the city of Malmo on Saturday after accusing Israeli broadcaster, Kan, of a rule breach.
The Irish performer accused the Israeli broadcaster of “inciting violence” against them three times and added they were waiting for the EBU to respond.
Bambie – who finished sixth with their gothic song Doomsday Blue – had repeatedly criticised the involvement of Israel’s representative, Eden Golan, who came fifth in the competition, given the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.
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Bambie Thug: ‘My favourite non-binary won’
The EBU said this week its governing bodies will work with the heads of delegations to review the events that took place at this year’s Eurovision and “move forward in a positive way and to ensure the values of the event are respected by everyone”.
“Individual cases will be discussed by the event’s governing body, the Eurovision Song Contest Reference Group, made up of representatives from participating broadcasters, at its next meeting,” it said.
Nemo celebrates after winning the Eurovision Song Contest. Pic: AP
The 68th edition of the annual song contest was won by Nemo from Switzerland – the first non-binary performer to take the trophy.
But the week of the competition was marred by controversy, after the disqualification of The Netherlands’s contestant Joost Klein who was stopped from taking part over an “incident” where he was alleged to have made verbal threats to a female production worker.
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Eurovision as it happened
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A Pro-Palestinian demonstration ahead of the second semi-final at the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmo. Pic: AP
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It was the first time in Eurovision history that an act has been disqualified after reaching the grand final.
Meanwhile, around 10,000-12,000 people, including Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, took to the streets of Malmo across the weekend to call for Israel to be excluded from the contest.
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How did Eurovision 2024 unfold?
Numerous contestants – including Lithuania, France and Portugal – also tentatively brought politics to the stage after performing in the final, with all of them commenting on the importance of peace.
Israel’s Ms Golan told Sky News after the contest she had ignored all the controversy and was “over the moon” about coming fifth in the competition.
Kelly Clarkson has addressed speculation about her weight loss, saying she has not used Ozempic but “something else” which has helped her.
The singer and talk show host spoke about the issue with actress Whoopi Goldberg, who has also lost a lot of weight after having treatment, in an episode of The Kelly Clarkson Show.
Numerous Hollywood stars are rumoured to have used Ozempic to lose weight – but just a handful of celebrities have admitted it publicly.
Whoopi Goldberg says she has lost “almost two people” in weight. Pic: Evan Agostini/Invision/AP 2023
The medication was originally designed for people with diabetes, suppressing the appetite and lengthening the amount of time food stays in the stomach, leading to weight loss.
On the show, Goldberg, 68, told Clarkson she had “lost almost two people” in weight by “doing that wonderful shot that works for folks that need some help”. She has previously spoken about using the medication Mounjaro, another diabetes drug approved for weight loss in the US.
Clarkson, 42, responded by sharing her own story: “My doctor chased me for like two years and I was like, ‘No, I’m afraid of it. I already have thyroid problems’,” she said. “Everybody thinks it Ozempic. It’s not.”
Instead, Clarkson said she had used “something else… that aids in helping break down the sugar – obviously my body doesn’t do it right”.
She weighed 203 pounds, or 14.5 stone, at her heaviest, she said, and decided to begin her weight loss journey after watching a performance of herself and not recognising who she was watching on screen.
“You see it, and you’re like, ‘well, she’s about to die of a heart attack’,” Clarkson said.
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Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
The American Idol star was also told she was pre-diabetic earlier this year.
In January, she told People, she had lost weight after listening to her doctor and was eating “a healthy mix”.
Ozempic has been banned as a treatment for obesity in the UK due to high demand for the drug causing a global shortage.
Stephen Fry was prescribed the drug in the US “years ago” and said earlier this year that side effects included vomiting up to five times a day.
Oprah Winfrey has also said she has taken weight loss drugs, though has declined to specify which one.
Former Capital radio host Roman Kemp has revealed he switched antidepressants because the ones he was taking were giving him a low sex drive.
The 31-year-old, who is the son of former Spandau Ballet and EastEnders star Martin Kemp, has been open about his mental health struggles. He has been taking antidepressants since he was 15.
Roman Kemp, right, with his father Martin: Pic: AP
Speaking to The Times about how his use of medication has affected him, Kemp revealed he had to change his treatment in order to improve his libido.
He said: “It’s reality. It’s a very common thing that antidepressants can do. But I spoke to my doctor, he switched me to a different one and now I’m back up and running.
“There’s not really a lot of secrets that I wouldn’t divulge if I don’t think they can benefit other people.”
Kemp said he isn’t dating at the moment but is keen to have children in the next few years.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
In April, he said he decided to leave his role hosting the Capital radio breakfast show because being in the studio was like reliving the “horrible” moment of discovering his friend’s death “over and over” again.
Kemp’s best friend and producer Joe Lyons took his own life in August 2020, and the star learned of his death while he was at work.
The following year he made a documentary about mental health called Our Silent Emergency, which is now shown in schools and was nominated for a National Television Award.
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The Princess of Wales later called him for a chat as she launched her Shaping Up mental health campaign.
Reflecting on a short film he made with Princess Kate as part of the campaign, he said it was “one of the most surreal days of my life” when she met him at his parents’ house to discuss the production.
“Me, my mum, dad, sister and the princess just chatting round the kitchen table,” he explained.
“The weirdest thing is, she took her shoes off at the door. You never really see a princess in her socks.”
Catherine, the Princess of Wales, last year. Pic: Reuters
Although perhaps best known for his 10-year stint at Capital radio, Kemp has also appeared on The One Show and Celebrity Gogglebox.
He has also appeared on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!
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