Britain's Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, speaks at a roundtable about support for veterans, Aug 19, 2026, in Washington. (Photo: AP/Alex Brandon)
21 Aug 2026 10:27PM
LONDON: A UK court ordered Prince Harry and six others Friday (Aug 21) to pay an initial £9.5 million (US$13 million) after they lost their privacy case against the publisher of British tabloid the Daily Mail.The court said the prince and six other high-profile figures, who lost their unlawful information gathering and privacy invasions claim against Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL), must make the payment within a week.The claimants - which include Elton John, his husband David Furnish, actors Elizabeth Hurley and Sadie Frost - accused the Mail of bugging their cars and homes, listening into calls and accessing bank accounts and medical records. ANL had denied all the allegations.After an emotional 11-week trial, judge Matthew Nicklin sided with the publisher in a ruling handed down on Jul 7, concluding the "claimants failed to prove their pleaded allegations".
After a further two-day hearing over costs, he made Friday's initial costs decision."The Court ordered the claimants make an interim payment of £9,544,355" by 4pm local time on Aug 28," a published summary stated.It noted ANL had said its total costs defending itself had reached about £34.5 million by Jul 9, which the court described as "exceptionally high" and "unprecedented".
