Prince Harry, the younger son of King Charles III, took the stand Wednesday in a London courtroom, becoming emotional in his testimony and invoking the experiences of his wife and his late mother.
Harry appeared near tears as he ended his testimony in the privacy invasion case against publisher Associated Newspapers Limited, the publishers of the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday, according to reporters inside the courtroom.
“I think it’s fundamentally wrong [for Associated Newspapers Limited] to put us through this again when all we [claimants] required is an apology and some accountability,” Harry said at the conclusion of his testimony. “It’s a horrible experience and the worst bit of it is, by standing up here, they continue to come after me and make my wife’s life an absolute misery.”
Britain’s Prince Harry gives evidence in his privacy lawsuit against the publisher of The Daily Mail, at the High Court in London, Britain January 21, 2026, in this courtroom sketch.
Julia Quenzler/Reuters
Harry traveled solo from California, where he lives with his wife Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, and their two children, to testify in the trial, which began Monday.
The Duke of Sussex, along with six other parties including musician Elton John and actress Elizabeth Hurley, have accused Associated Newspapers of illegal information-gathering practices.
They have specifically accused the publisher of allegedly hiring private investigators who they claim used unlawful means to gather information on them in the late 1990s and early 2000s, including secretly placing listening devices inside cars and homes and allegedly paying police officials for inside information.
Associated Newspapers is denying all allegations from the plaintiffs, calling them “preposterous” and says the claims are “unsubstantiated and highly defamatory” and “based on no credible evidence.”
Harry was the first witness to be called in the trial, taking the stand one day earlier than expected.
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex departs from a court case against Associated Newspapers Ltd at The Royal Courts of Justice on January 21, 2026 in London, England.
Dan Kitwood/Getty Images
When asked in court Wednesday why he had not complained in real time about articles published by Associated Newspapers, Harry replied that he could not because of his position in the royal family at the time.
Harry’s lawyers have identified 14 articles written between 2001 and 2013 — many of which focus on Harry’s girlfriend at the time, Chelsy Davy — which they say contain unlawfully gathered information.
“I wasn’t able to complain because of institution I was in,” Harry said. “It would have been very difficult. Never complain and never explain.”
Harry and Meghan stepped away from their roles as senior royals in 2020, the same year they moved to California, where Meghan is from.
In his witness statement submitted to the court, Harry said that he learned more about alleged press activity after leaving the U.K., stating, “It is not an exaggeration to say that the bubble burst in terms of what I knew in 2020 when I moved out of the United Kingdom.”
Under cross-examination from a lawyer for Associated Newspapers, Harry argued that the articles printed about him were not legitimately sourced through his friends and associates.
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex departs during a court case against Associated Newspapers Ltd at The Royal Courts of Justice on January 20, 2026 in London, England.
Dan Kitwood/Getty Images
“I am not friends with these journalists, I never have been,” Harry responded, later adding, “My social circles were not leaky, I want to make that absolutely clear.”
Harry added that if he became suspicious of someone, “I would have to cut contact with this person.”
In his witness statement, Harry also invoked his late mother, Princess Diana, who died in a car crash on Aug. 31, 1997, at the age of 36, while being pursued by paparazzi in Paris.
“Following the death of my mother in 1997 when I was 12 years old and her treatment at the hands of the press, I have always had an uneasy relationship with them,” the statement read. “However, as a member of the Institution the policy was to ‘never complain, never explain.’ There was no alternative; I was conditioned to accept it. For the most part, I accepted the interest in my performing my public functions.“
“However, in late 2016, when my relationship with Meghan, my now wife, became public, I started to become increasingly troubled by the approach of not taking action against the press in the wake of vicious persistent attacks on, harassment of and intrusive, sometimes racist articles concerning Meghan,” the statement continued.
The trial is expected to last several weeks and is also expected to include additional testimony from Harry’s fellow plaintiffs, including Hurley and John.
ABC News’ Zoe Magee contributed to this report.