THE FUSE

The Duke of Sussex was visibly emotional as he told a court the life of his wife, the Duchess of Sussex, had been made "an absolute misery" by the publisher of the Daily Mail and the Mail on Sunday.

Prince Harry was speaking as he concluded his evidence in his case against Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL) at the High Court, much of which focused on articles about his relationships before meeting Meghan.

The prince's voice broke as he said the court battle had been a "horrible experience" for his family and that all he wanted was "an apology and some accountability".

He is one of seven high-profile claimants accusing ANL of "grave breaches of privacy" over a 20-year period. The publisher has denied wrongdoing.

The prince's claim focuses on 14 articles - most of which are about his relationship with a previous girlfriend, Chelsy Davy.

In his witness statement, he said the papers' coverage of their relationship had been "terrifying" and left him "really worried something bad was going to happen".

He accused the publisher of "probably wanting to drive me to drugs and drinking to sell more of their papers".

The prince also said it was "beyond cruel" to publish an article detailing "confidential discussions" he had with his family after a photo of his dying mother Diana, Princess of Wales, was published in the Italian press.

The claimants have accused ANL of "clear, systematic and sustained use of unlawful information gathering" for stories between 1993 and "beyond" 2018, including through private investigators and blagging.

In his 23-page witness statement the prince said he had always felt under "24-hour surveillance" but at the time the articles were published "knew nothing of Associated's unlawful acts that were directed at me and those around me".

He said the articles drove him "paranoid beyond belief" and made him feel like he was "part of an endless pursuit, a campaign, an obsession of having every aspect of my life under surveillance".

Harry added that the Mail was the first to publicly disclose Davy's name and the subsequent "intrusion was terrifying for Chelsy: it made her feel like she was being hunted".

"Their behaviour and treatment of Chelsy was not normal," he said. "I was really worried something bad was going to happen."

Harry told the court he did not remember reading the 2006 article about his and his brother's reactions to the publication of a picture of their mother after her fatal car crash at the time, but said the "disgusting" piece made him think: "If Associated was willing to publish this type of material, then it really makes me wonder how far they are prepared to go."

Information in the article, he said, suggested they "were plainly listening in to our calls".

ANL has previously denied allegations of unlawful information gathering.

Joining the duke in bringing the lawsuit against ANL are:

Actors Liz Hurley and Sadie Frost

Sir Elton John and his husband David Furnish

Sir Simon Hughes, the former Liberal Democrat MP

Baroness Doreen Lawrence, a campaigner whose son Stephen Lawrence was murdered in a racist attack in south London in 1993

ANL's lawyer Antony White KC has said the claimants are "clutching at straws", and that in some cases celebrities' friends and social circles contributed as sources to Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday journalists.

In court on Wednesday, White suggested Harry knew his social circle was "leaky", to which the prince responded: "My social circles were not leaky, I want to make that absolutely clear."