Duke kept calm on witness stand, but there is much more to come tomorrow

You didn’t need to be in court to understand the intense press interest in Prince Harry.

The crowd of cameras outside said it all.

This is nothing new for Harry, but stepping into the witness stand was unfamiliar territory.

Here was a senior royal, the son of the King, subjecting himself to cross-examination in a court of law.

This just doesn’t happen. Well not since 1891, and the testimony of Edward VII only lasted 20 minutes.

Harry’s questioning was all day, quick-fire and difficult.

But if the Mirror Group legal team had hoped to goad him, it didn’t work.

Harry’s witness statement set out, manifesto-like, his mission to try and change the way the media works.

And this is because as he says, he’s had a “front-row seat” when it comes to the press using illegal means to obtain stories.

Stories that he says all “played a disruptive role” as he grew up.

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These aren’t new allegations or revelations, but what we heard was Harry’s account of the impact they had, which he says was “profound”.

We heard how he was typecast by the papers, and these tropes and stereotypes shaped how he behaved.

He spoke about the rumors that James Hewitt is his father, how they were “hurtful mean and cruel”.

Prince Harry court case as it happened

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And his biggest criticism came for the journalists who with “cowardice” didn’t testify and the editors who he says turned a blind eye to phone hacking.

Piers Morgan‘s name came up more than once. Prince Harry says he and Meghan have faced “horrific personal attacks and intimidation” from Morgan because he’s brought this claim against the Mirror.

But what we came away with was Harry’s account of how little privacy he has ever been allowed, despite his position of privilege, nothing he says was “off limits”.

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He chose to appear in court, this is what he wanted. And he remained calm throughout.

He strongly feels it is in the public’s interest to expose what he believes is criminal activity. Even adding in his witness statement: “We will be better off for it.”

His lawyers are said to be happy with how it went.

But this is only day one, and Harry will face much more tomorrow.

Harry in Court – Watch the special programme on Sky News tonight at 9pm

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