Prince Harry, the youngest son of Charles III, known for his struggle against British tabloids, made a surprise appearance at a hearing against the Daily Mail newspaper in London on Monday, six weeks before his father’s coronation.
Since he and his wife, former US actress Meghan Markle, shook up the monarchy by announcing they would be leaving their official duties to live in California in 2020, the 38-year-old prince has been traveling to the UK on rare occasions that always raise high expectations.
On Monday morning, the Sky News TV channel showed pictures of him getting out of a taxi and entering the Palace of Justice in London, where the Supreme Court is located.
In a hearing expected to last four days, publishing group Associated Newspapers is trying to get a lawsuit filed by several celebrities accusing it of illegally gathering information to be shelved.
Six of the plaintiffs, led by Harry, singer Elton John and actress Liz Hurley, allege that the Daily Mail used investigators to listen in on their conversations in their cars at their homes.
When the lawsuit was announced in early October, Associated Newspapers fully refuted and boycotted these preposterous fabrications.
The surprise appearance in London of the prince, who is visiting the UK on an exceptional basis, comes just over a month before his father’s coronation on May 6.
He and Meghan, who have lived in California since leaving the monarchy in 2020, were invited to the ceremony but have not yet announced whether or not they will attend.
The last time they were seen in public in the UK was at the funeral of Harry’s grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, in September last year.
Their eventual return to the country has been the subject of much speculation in British tabloids in recent months, in the wake of the couple’s scathing attacks on the royal family.
In December, Netflix broadcast a six-episode documentary, “Harry & Meghan,” in which they settle scores with the British media and with members of the royal family, especially William, Harry’s older brother and heir to the throne.
Then, in January, Harry published a controversial memoir, What Was Left, in which he recounts sordid details about his life within the British royal family and his poor relations with his father and brother.
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