Prince Harry Described Taking the Witness Stand in 4 Words
Prince Harry summed up his time on the witness stand with one sentence after days-long testimony in a phone hacking lawsuit. Ahead, how the Duke of Sussex described the experience. Plus, the moment he appeared to get emotional talking about his wife, Meghan Markle.
Prince Harry began his witness testimony on June 6
Harry’s time on the witness stand started on June 6 following a slight hiccup at London High Court a day earlier. Judge Sir Timothy Fancour requested witnesses be in court in London, England, on June 5 in the event time allowed for testimony to begin.
However, as Harry’s lawyer David Sherborne told Fancour, the 38-year-old wasn’t ready and waiting. Instead, Harry boarded a plane later than the judge might’ve liked because he and the Duchess of Sussex’s daughter Princess Lilibet turned 2 on June 4.
The judge was said to have told the court he’d been “surprised” not to see Harry there as proceedings got underway. Ultimately, Harry began to give evidence on June 6 when the Mirror Group Newspapers’ lawyer Andrew Green questioned him on his claims.
Harry contends MGN’s The Daily Mirror and Sunday People used unlawful information-gathering techniques in a number of stories for approximately 15 years beginning in 1996.
In taking the witness stand, Harry reportedly became the first senior British royal to give evidence since 1891.
Harry described being on the witness stand for 1.5 days as ‘a lot’
On June 7, after inching closer to spending two days on the stand, Harry’s time as a witness came to an end. However, not before he told the court how it felt.
At one point, his lawyer asked: “Prince Harry, you have been in that witness box for over a day and a half (via The Telegraph). You have had to go through these articles and answer questions knowing this is a very public courtroom and the world’s media are watching. How has that made you feel?”
Harry reportedly looked down and, after a long pause, replied: “Erm, it’s a lot.” From there, the father of two answered a few questions from the judge before taking a seat beside his legal team. Harry left the witness box around 2:30 p.m. local time.
Harry reportedly teared up on the witness stand, saying the court battle is for Meghan Markle
It seems discussing his experience in court wasn’t the only time Harry got emotional on the witness stand. The Duke of Sussex “fought back tears,” according to The Independent, as he described taking legal action to protect Meghan.
Harry told the court he did so amid the “absolute intrusion and hate that was coming towards me and my wife.” It led him to “see if there was any way to find a different course of action, rather than relying on the institution’s way.”
Following his own testimony, Harry didn’t leave the courthouse. Instead, he stayed to watch his lawyer question The Mirror’s former royal editor, Jane Kerr.
Harry’s phone-hacking trial is ongoing and expected to wrap up in mid to late June 2023.
