5 Relationship Confessions From Prince Harry's Court Testimony We Can't Stop Thinking About
It's no secret that Prince Harry has had his fair share of struggles with the media. Yet, the Duke of Sussex's appearance at the High Court has shed some new light on just how difficult his struggles have been. Harry's civil lawsuit is against British tabloid publisher Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN) for using unlawful means of gathering information. On June 7, the duke appeared in court for a second day to testify, arguing that for the newspapers, nothing is, in his words "off limits," per Express.
In the wake of the New York paparazzi car chase that Harry and Meghan Markle say was "near-fatal," it's safe to say that the duke's negative feelings toward the press are even more heightened than before. Yet, more has come out of this trial than just further confirmation of Harry's ongoing feud with the media. Harry's time testifying has unearthed some sad truths about Harry's relationships and how they have been affected by the press' relentless involvement in his life. Here are five new confessions Harry made about his love life that have us seeing his pain from the media's constant intrusions in a new light.
1. Chelsy Davy couldn't handle the heat from tabloids
During his first day testifying, Prince Harry spoke about the press' "twisted objective" to destroy all of his relationships over the course of his life. Harry has always strived to be a good partner, but in his words, "every woman has her limit" when it comes to dealing with the media, per Express. "Unfortunately, [my past girlfriends were] not just in a relationship with me but with the entire tabloid press as the third party," Harry explained.
His confessions went further, revealing that the press had a lot to do with what really happened between Harry and ex-girlfriend, Chelsy Davy. He explained that they were "never on our own," constantly accompanied by the "prying eyes of the tabloids." He went on to say, "Ultimately, these factors led [Chelsy] to make the decision that a royal life was not for her, which was incredibly upsetting for me at the time," adding, "I always felt as if the tabloids wanted me to be single, as I was much more interesting to them and sold more newspapers."
2. 'Hooray Harry Dumped' was embarrassing
While Prince Harry's relationships presented plenty of tabloid fodder, his breakups did even more so. Harry recalled headlines that seemed to be happy about his painful breakup with Chelsy Davy and how this was difficult to see. "'Hooray Harry Dumped' was hurtful, to say the least, that such a private moment was turned into a bit of a laugh," Harry recalled, per Reuters. He called the joy had by the media over the ending of his relationship "a little bit mean."
A 2009 article from The People tabloid titled "Chelsy's New Fella" was brought up during the trial, which accused the duke of "bombarding" Davy to rekindle their romance after their breakup, claiming that Davy's "close friend" confirmed this. Harry took issue with this, saying, "I would not have told anyone if I was calling Chelsy regularly, and given the way Chelsy has also been guarded with who she tells information to, I have no idea who the 'close pal' could be that the Defendant's journalists are attributing some of the information to," suggesting that it was fabricated to stir up trouble, per CBS. He added that "a lot of these quotes were attributed to friends ... But by this point, Chelsy and I were not sharing anything with anyone" (via New York Times).
3. Media attention squashed Harry's romance with another ex
On the witness stand, Prince Harry argued the vicious tabloids wreaked havoc on his relationships. "At no point did I have a girlfriend or a relationship with anyone without the tabloids getting involved and ultimately trying to ruin it using whatever unlawful means at their disposal," Harry shared, adding that for anyone he'd dated, the "whole person's family, and often their friends, would be dragged into the chaos and find themselves the subject of unlawful activity on the part of MGN" (via Express). He confessed that one of his ex's parents asked her if their relationship was "really worth all the aggravation," which ended their relationship.
Prince Harry also believes that the press went much further than just that to interfere with his life and create more content to publish and ultimately destroy his romantic relationships. On June 7, MGN's lawyer, Andrew Green, brought up an article that was published in the Mirror tabloid in 2008. The article was titled, "Harry fear as mobile is swiped" and was published the day after his phone was stolen.
"I could never relax," Harry recalled invasion of privacy, per CBS. Harry also claimed that he had been "stalked" by the paparazzi his whole life (via New York Times). He added that he often had no idea where he'd run into them or where they'd be hiding. "The surveillance I was under was quite disturbing," Harry said.
4. Harry says Chelsy wasn't mad about his strip club outing
Much of Harry's lawsuit trial is based on Prince Harry's belief that Britain's Mirror Group Newspapers hacked into his phone. During the trial, a 2006 article titled "Chel Shocked" was referenced. This article reported that Harry's girlfriend at the time, Chelsy Davy, had called the duke numerous times as a result of a fight they were having about a night he'd gone to a strip club. Per CBS, Harry explained that "the detail about the timing and length of the calls is so specific," yet he argues that as his memory serves him, Chelsy wasn't angry at all, as they'd claimed.
Harry noted that MGN had records of having paid private investigators on two occasions around this time. "Given the private details in the article, and the very specific details about my phone activity, I find these payments particularly suspicious," he explained. "It seems likely to me that the Defendant's journalists had access to one of our phone records and put two and two together to make a story."
Harry later claimed, "I believe that phone hacking was at an industrial scale across at least three of the papers at the time and that was beyond a doubt." Consequently, he added that he would "feel some injustice" if this "wasn't accepted" as truth by the court (via New York Times).
5. Harry's private date with Caroline Flack was ruined
Prince Harry has seen just how much of a toll the media can take on those around him. The defense's lawyer brought up a date Harry had gone on with TV host Caroline Flack. Harry replied, "This evening was strictly between myself and Caroline, who is no longer with us" (via New York Times). Harry's name-drop is particularly notable, since Flack died by suicide in February 2020, which, in her family's opinion, was a result of the tragic effect the media attention had on her mental health.
Harry explained the paps were relentless in their pursuit of Flack, so he planned their second meetup to be private and low-key — coordinating with his trusted royal aide, 'Marko,' via the phone and leaving voicemails. "Only Marko, Caroline and I knew of the plans, there was only a couple of other people invited and I don't think they knew that Caroline would be joining us," he recalled. So when their plan was discovered, things quickly turned sour for Harry. "Given the fact only the three of us knew the plan, I was highly suspicious and convinced someone had leaked the information to the press. I was angry. I hadn't told anybody." That's pretty devastating considering how Flack's life ended — we imagine there is a lot of regret and frustration on Harry's end. If the royal's claims are correct, Flack might have been the target of his distrust for no reason.
All in all, Harry's confessions illustrate just how difficult his life in the public eye really is and how it has resulted in situations that would be, in his own words, "horrible for anyone."
If you or anyone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by dialing 988 or by calling 1-800-273-TALK (8255).