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Prince Harry on Tabloids on Trial© ITV

Prince Harry reveals the 'central piece' behind 'rift' with the royal family

The Duke of Sussex appears in a new TV documentary

Danielle Stacey
Online Royal CorrespondentLondon
July 24, 2024
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The Duke of Sussex will touch upon his rift with the royal family in a new documentary about phone hacking.

Prince Harry will discuss his "mission to continue his fight to expose the illegal tactics of Britain's tabloid press" in ITV's Tabloids On Trial, which airs on Thursday 25 July.

In a sit-down interview with ITV News's Rebecca Barry, the Duke is asked if his determination to take legal action against newspaper publishers played a part in "destroying the relationship" with his family.

Watch below...

WATCH: Prince Harry opens up on cause behind rift with royal family

"Yeah, that's certainly a central piece to it," Harry responds. "But, you know, that's a hard question to answer because anything I say about my family results in a torrent of abuse from the press.

"I've made it very clear that this is something that needs to be done. It would be nice if we, you know, did it as a family. I believe that, again, from a service standpoint and when you are in a public role, that these are the things that we should be doing for the greater good. But, you know, I'm doing this for my reasons."

Harry was pictured sitting three rows away from William and Kate at the coronation© Getty
Harry was last pictured publicly with the royal family at his father's coronation last May

Rebecca asks the Duke: "What do you think of their decision not to fight in the way that you have?"

Harry replies: "I think everything that's played out has shown people what the truth of the matter is. For me, the mission continues, but it has, yes. It's caused, as you say, part of a rift."

The father-of-two, who now resides in Montecito with his wife Meghan, and their two children, Prince Archie, five, and three-year-old Princess Lilibet, settled his case against Mirror Group Newspapers in February.

Prince Harry interviewed by ITV News' Rebecca Barry © ITV
Prince Harry was interviewed by ITV News' Rebecca Barry

Harry sued the newspaper publisher for damages, claiming journalists at its publications were linked to methods including phone hacking, so-called "blagging" – gaining information by deception – and use of private investigators for unlawful activities.

He was awarded £140,600 after the judge concluded there was "extensive" phone hacking generally by MGN from 2006 to 2011, "even to some extent" during the Leveson Inquiry into media standards.

Prince Harry waves outside court© Getty
Harry gave evidence at the MGN trial in June 2023

The Duke is also one of seven high-profile claimants to bring legal action against Associated Newspapers Ltd, the publisher of the Daily Mail over allegations it carried out or commissioned unlawful information-gathering.

Harry's claim against News Group Newspapers (NGN), the publisher of The Sun and the now-defunct News Of The World over alleged unlawful information-gathering but not allegations of phone hacking, is set for a full trial in January 2025. Both newspaper publishers deny the allegations.

Tabloids On Trial ITV1 & ITVX 9pm Thursday

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