Piers Morgan, the erstwhile host of "Good Morning Britain," remained seemingly unperturbed by Prince Harry's accusations lodged against him during a testimony at the High Court in London on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Paul Burrell, Princess Diana's former butler, expressed his indignation at the royal's allegations concerning his purported exploitation of Diana's personal effects.
The Duke of Sussex's sworn affidavit, accessed by Newsweek, suggested that Morgan had unleashed a torrent of "horrific personal attacks and intimidation" against him and his wife Meghan Markle. This was in apparent retribution to the prince's pending lawsuit against Mirror Group Newspapers, an entity where Morgan once held the editor's chair.
Prince Harry insisted that illicit tactics, including phone hacking, were used to publish stories about him during Morgan's tenure. The prince lambasted Morgan's vitriol aimed at him and his wife as a potential ploy to deter him from seeking accountability for what he characterized as Morgan's unlawful activities during his editorship, which targeted both him and his late mother.
He further alleged that Morgan and his coterie of journalists acquired details by eavesdropping on Princess Diana's confidential messages for articles, an act he described as causing him physical revulsion and strengthening his resolve to seek justice for the deplorable and wholly unjustifiable actions.
When a Sky News journalist confronted Morgan about these allegations outside his West London residence on Tuesday, the former host professed ignorance about Prince Harry's accusations and wished the prince luck with his privacy campaign.
Additionally, Prince Harry's courtroom declarations shed light on an incident with Princess Diana's erstwhile butler, Paul Burrell, linked to a 2003 tabloid story. This article outlined Prince Harry's reluctance to meet Burrell in an attempt to forestall further revelations about their mother following Burrell's candid memoir.
Prince Harry openly criticized Burrell's decision to capitalize on Princess Diana's personal items and his multiple interviews about her, expressing his belief that Burrell's actions breached the privacy that Princess Diana deserved posthumously, particularly from someone she trusted.
However, Burrell retorted to Prince Harry's claims, asserting his consistent protection and affection for Princess Diana and the young princes. He implored the duke to apologize for his defamatory statements, underscoring the collapse of his 2002 theft trial, an incident Prince Harry would be well aware of. He reminded the duke of Queen Elizabeth II's intervention, which led to his exoneration when investigators found no evidence of theft from the princess.
