The Tragedy of Prince Harry

His Courtroom Struggle Confirms his Shakespearean Fall

As his day and a half of testimony ended, a reporter watched a tired Harry in court, and posted her observations on Twitter:

“Prince Harry leaves the witness box & sits next to his solicitors.

He puffs out his cheeks clearly drained & briefly puts his hands on his face.”

It could have been the final scene of a Shakespearean play or Greek tragedy.

The main character alone in his anguish, the audience left to read his mind… and it’s hard to escape the notion that Harry is struggling, wondering how he ended up here?

Most people expected a few rough days in court for Harry, but not many expected this.

Although Team Sussex were quick to leak that they were ‘happy with how he maintained his poise and focus during some tough questioning’ - no one could give the same praise on his substance.

Quite simply - Harry arrived in court for what he’s called “his life’s work” - empty handed.

Harry had cited 33 articles for his case against Mirror Group Newspapers, from 1996 to 2010, articles that he claims contained information obtained by unlawful means.

Yet, under forensic and firm cross examination, it seemed he failed to produce any evidence.

In fact, there were major inconsistencies in his claims, from not having his own mobile until 1998 (how could they hack a phone he didn’t have?) to stories appearing in other media outlets first, to the information coming from official palace statements.

(it’s incredible how unaware Harry still seems to be about the workings of the monarch and Royal Family, and why they sometimes have to explain things to the public, via the press)

Jane Kerr, former Royal correspondent at the Mirror, also testified to vehemently deny Harry’s claims:

“I worked hard and honestly as a journalist, always believing I was doing the right thing, and I felt proud and privileged to be the Mirror’s royal reporter.

“To be accused of such a thing is extremely upsetting.”

It was striking that Harry’s chief complaint seemed to be not criminal activity, but the general awfulness of living life in the public eye. However, as Andrew Green, barrister for the Mirror (almost gently) noted:

“Everybody has enormous sympathy with the extraordinary degree of press intrusion, but it doesn’t necessarily follow it was the result of unlawful activity.”

After being repeatedly challenged that there was actually no call data to verify his claims, but extensive data to verify the past News of the World complaints, Harry said the reporters must have been using “burner phones” (why they would do that for him alone, went unasked) - and when he was provided past emails from reporters detailing their actual sources, he suggested they must have been fabricated to “cover their tracks”.

In short, Harry refused to believe any evidence, yet failed to produce much of his own, telling the court that what he did have - were endless suspicions:

Harry: “There is hard evidence to suggest an incredible amount of suspiciousness"

Sorry, what? ‘Evidence of suspiciousness’ isn’t really a thing.

Not to mention, “hard evidence” generally means you can prove something, not merely “suggest” it.

As many have noted, phone hacking was addressed in 2011, more than a decade ago.

To be clear, it was and is an unspeakable violation, and there are true victims. Many of them were addressed with the Leveson inquiry, which resulted in the Royals and other celebrities getting more press protections than ever. Changes were made, people were jailed, millions were paid out, and several media outlets crumbled as a result.

Harry actually minimises those legitimate complaints when he appears in court unable to back up any of his own.

But more than the fight over press and privacy, I’ve been repeatedly struck by the tragedy of this.

This is the life Harry has chosen?

He walked away from his Royal platform to live in chaos and courtrooms?

Think of all Harry could have done instead. He is a prince who once had it all, the profile and means to take the world by storm.

He could have chosen to live quietly out of the public eye, creating that idyllic family life he wished for as a child, with the safety of a fortune he inherited - one others can only dream of.

He could have lived quietly, but still publicly, as a philanthropist, aggressively working on behalf of any number of charities, using his immense profile for good.

More than anything, he could have ended his Royal job in agreement and on good terms with his family, so he wouldn’t be isolated in California, thousands of miles from the UK but still unable to move on.

Instead, Harry seems consumed by a search for someone to blame, for his past predicaments, his present problems, and what’s increasingly looking like his grim future.

You couldn’t help but think Harry needs a therapist’s room more than a courtroom.

No matter how the judge rules, Harry has already lost more than he knows.

For the last three years, Harry has voluntarily made decisions to invade his family’s privacy, and his own privacy, for personal profit, as well as numerous decisions to pursue multiple court cases, most against the British press.

Yet it seems impossible to think he can carry on like this.

Especially after the PR fiasco of their NY “chase” - does Harry know how much he’s actually lost?

His credibility is all but gone, his reputation is in tatters, his finances must be taking a massive hit with endless legal battles, not to mention a lavish lifestyle.

Harry and Meghan seem to think if they keep talking, keep fighting, they’ll eventually convince their critics, and right the multiple wrongs that they believe exist.

Actually - the opposite is true.

With every statement, every story, every court case, the Sussexes are digging a dangerous hole deeper and deeper.

What they really need to do - is disappear.

Give people time to forget about your drama, Netflix, your book, and all the complaints you’ve made in court.

Declare a leave of absence, temporarily shutter your business, and resist the urge to make a single announcement.

As former Vanity Fair chief Graydon Carter just said in an interview with The Telegraph:

“They have too much attention. For people like that, unavailability is your greatest asset.

If you’re out there too much, the public has a chance to get sick of you.

I think they’ve made every wrong move you can make.” 

Harry claimed he wanted to “save” journalism as a profession… what he really needs now is for someone to save him from himself.