Coronation Street star Michael Le Vell says phone hacking trial has taken ‘years off his life’
Coronation Street star Michael Le Vell has said the legal fight with Mirror Group Newspapers over phone hacking has taken “years off his life” and transported him to “really dark places”.
The veteran actor, who has played mechanic Kevin Webster in the Manchester soap for almost 40 years, said confusion over where certain stories had come from caused him to “alienate decent people in my life” and become “extremely paranoid”.
Colleagues suspected him of being a “mole”, he said, as stories about them appeared in the newspapers.
Speaking on the final day of evidence at the Rolls Building in central London, Le Vell, whose real name is Michael Turner, said of the saga: “It’s taken about five years off my life.
“It’s been emotional and it has made me go to somewhere where I thought I would never go again – and that’s really dark places.”
Le Vell went through several stories about him which were splashed in the Mirror, including an article about his arrest in 2011 on suspicion of sexual offences – of which he was later cleared.
Regarding that arrest, he said he remembered seeing an article and “wondering how the press got hold of this information”.
Asked by his barrister David Sherborne how he felt about the publication, he said he was “disgusted”.
He continued: “It just makes me sound like I was a broken man, and I was, but I didn’t want the world knowing.”
Le Vell said he had become ‘extremely paranoid’
In written evidence before the court, Le Vell said he had become “extremely paranoid” over stories about him in the press and that he blamed people around him.
That caused a huge amount of damage to trust and to relationships, he said, commenting: “I feel like I wasted a lot of years alienating decent people in my life.”
He went on to explain why he had joined the legal fight with the Duke of Sussex and more than a hundred others, saying: “Sometimes you just have to speak up for yourself. Now is the time to do that.”
The 58-year-old is suing Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN), the publisher of the Daily and Sunday Mirror and the Sunday People, for damages over alleged unlawful information gathering between 1991 and 2011.
He claims journalists there were linked to phone hacking; so-called “blagging” or gaining information by deception; and the use of private investigators for unlawful activities.
Prince Harry gave evidence in his case earlier on in the trial
MGN denies Le Vell’s claim, arguing there is “no evidence” of voicemail interception or unlawful information gathering relating to him.
Richard Munden, lawyer for MGN, previously alleged Le Vell’s case is “particularly weak”, saying that some articles in the claim were before phone hacking started or when it had “significantly dropped off”.
Le Vell was followed on the witness stand by Alan Halsall who is supporting his claim. “To think that people did not trust him and wrongly suspected him of leaking information to the defendant is heartbreaking to me and to him,” Halsall said in his witness statement.
Halsall also talked about his own experiences of phone hacking; he described voicemails “going missing” for a period or described dialling in to listen to a voicemail and hearing an “engaged tone”.
At the end of the submissions in court on Tuesday, the judge, Mr Justice Fancourt, read a list of journalists’ names, including Matthew Wright, Neil Wallis, Katie Hind, and former Daily Mirror editor Piers Morgan, and questioned why none of them had been called as witnesses in the case.
Mr Morgan, who has always denied any knowledge of phone hacking or illegal activity at the Daily Mirror, was yesterday accused of knowing how to hack phones, and explaining how to do it to others, by a former Mirror journalist.
Mr Justice Fancourt said he had a “question in my mind” about whether several people, including three or four associates of the Duke of Sussex, “could and should have given some evidence”.
The judge then specifically referred again to Mr Morgan and former Sunday People editor Neil Wallis, whom he said had “relatively recently had a lot to say about this matter outside of court”.
Closing submissions will be entered this week before final arguments pick up again in court on Tuesday.
The case will formally conclude at the end of next week, with a ruling expected at a later date.
England and Scotland fans have found out where their World Cup group games will be played when the tournament kicks off in June.
England, who are in Group L, will begin their tournament against Croatia in Dallas at 4pm EST (9pm BST) on 17 June. They will then go on to face Ghana in Boston at 4pm EST (9pm BST) on 23 June and Panama in New Jersey, New York, at 5pm EST (10pm BST) on 27 June.
Scotland are in Group C, and their first match will be against Haiti in Boston at 9pm EST on 13 June (2am GMT the following morning).
They will go up against Morocco also in Boston at 6pm EST (11pm GMT) on 19 June and then Brazil in Miami at 6pm EST (11pm GMT) on 24 June.
Fans are expected to rush to sort their travel and accommodation plans now that they know where and when the matches take place.
Read more: Unapologetically political – a World Cup draw like no other
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England and Scotland learn World Cup fate
Wales and Northern Ireland have yet to find out if they will qualify.
Wales must face a play-off against Bosnia and Herzegovina in Cardiff, then either Italy or Northern Ireland, if they are victorious.
If they beat these play-off opponents, they will secure their place in Group B alongside Canada, Qatar and Switzerland.
However, Northern Ireland will also be vying to guarantee their spot in the same group if they can beat Italy and then either Wales or Bosnia and Herzegovina.
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World Cup 2026 – who England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland will play
Scotland and England now know who they will face in the group stage of the next summer’s world cup.
But the fates of Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and Wales won’t be determined until they compete in pre-tournament play-off matches in March.
England are in Group L along with Croatia, Panama and Ghana. Their first match will be against Croatia, who beat them in the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
Pic: Reuters
Scotland’s first match will be against Haiti, in Group C.
Brazil and Morocco are the other Group C teams – both countries were also in the same opening group as Scotland in the 1998 World Cup in France.
Trump and Infantino at the World Cup draw
Wales have yet to find out if they will qualify as they must face a play-off against Bosnia and Herzegovina in Cardiff, and then either Italy or Northern Ireland, if they are victorious.
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If they can overcome these play-off opponents then they will secure their place in Group B along with Canada, Qatar and Switzerland. But Northern Ireland will also be vying and hoping to guarantee their spot in the same group if they can beat Italy and then either Wales or Bosnia and Herzegovina.
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‘Bring it on!’: Scotland fans react to World Cup draw
The Republic of Ireland also need to get through the play-offs first and are paired against the Czech Republic for their semi-final. Should Ireland win that match, they will need to beat either North Macedonia or Denmark to get to the finals where an opening group containing joint hosts Mexico, South Africa and South Korea awaits.
This was a World Cup draw like no other. Crafted less for the teams but for one man.
The choice of venue. The creation of a new trophy. The closing music act.
Donald Trump was lavished with the adulation he craves by FIFA President Gianni Infantino and feels others unfairly deny him.
Knowing how much being overlooked by the Nobel Committee hurt the US president, there was Mr Infantino with FIFA’s newly-created Peace Prize to hand over. And a medal for Mr Trump to wear.
“This is truly one of the great honours of my life,” he said. “And beyond awards, Gianni and I were discussing this. We saved millions and millions of lives.”
This was all on the stage in front of an audience who turned up to find out who they will be playing at the World Cup.
England handed an undaunting route past Croatia, Panama and Ghana. Scotland paired with newcomers Haiti before tricky reunions from their last men’s World Cup in 1998 against Brazil and Morocco.
Pic: Reuters
But the show before the draw could even begin – presided over by Rio Ferdinand – took almost as long as a football match, at 87 minutes after the noon kick-off was delayed.
There was a walk of self-promotion to complete – “I guess they have to wait” – before taking his seat in the Kennedy Center. Or the Trump Kennedy Center as the president takes to calling the venue picked 1.5 miles from the White House.
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England manager Thomas Tuchel reacts to draw
“It was falling apart,” he said, delaying the walk into the auditorium. “And now it’s, it’s pretty much back.”
Mr Infantino could only watch on, beaming, at his friend.
“We had a dead country,” Mr Trump went on, “and now we have the hottest country anywhere in the world”.
There was the awkwardness of being reminded, before receiving the peace accolade, about threats to launch military strikes on Venezuela to stop the drugs trade.
“I did settle eight wars, and we have a ninth coming,” he swatted away the question. “Which nobody’s ever done before. But I want to really save lives. I don’t need prizes.”
But FIFA knew how much he wanted more gold for the collection with the prize.
More on this story:
What draw means for England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland
Donald Trump and FIFA president Gianni Infantino. Pic: Reuters
Pic: Reuters
And for all the mockery and disdain targeted at FIFA, how many sports would relish having the US president spend several hours attending a procedural event determining the placing of teams in groups for a tournament?
How many would dish out the same flattery to secure direct lines to the leader of the nation staging their championship?
Many have benefited from Mr Trump’s stardust and swagger being attached to this spectacle.
Even Port Vale’s most famous fan – Robbie Williams – secured a walk-on role, exceeding his profile this side of the Pond.
And the Village People are reaping the rewards of becoming the unlikeliest of Trump hype acts.
The festivities ended with eyes fixed back up to the presidential seating and the YMCA dance being performed.
This was an afternoon that dispelled any pretence that FIFA keeps a distance from politics. It was unapologetically political. But few speak out in the FIFA world as the redistributed wealth keeps rolling back in their direction.
It would be easy to forget this isn’t entirely America’s World Cup. They’re sharing hosting with Canada and Mexico.
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‘Bring it on!’: Scotland fans react to World Cup draw
And eventually the spotlight was ceded to their leaders – very briefly – as Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney drew out their countries’ names.
But it did live up to FIFA’s mantra that football can unite the world.
The neighbours were brought together here on a snowy day in Washington. And tensions – often stoked by Mr Trump with Canada and Mexico – thawed in the name of football.
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