In recent weeks, most of the high-profile royal drama has centered around the coronation of King Charles III and the uncertainty surrounding the guest list.
But now that we know Prince Harry will be in attendance and Meghan Markle will not, it’s time to shift gears to an even higher-stakes scandal.
Yes, the coronation won’t take place until May 6, but Harry is already making headlines in London, thanks to his lawsuit against Rupert Murdoch’s News Group Newspapers, publishers of UK tabloid The Sun.
Along with other celebs like Elton John and Elizabeth Hurley, Harry has accused the scandal rag of invading his privacy via phone-tapping and other illegal activities.
Harry has spoken before about his family’s relationship with the press, and he remains convinced that the royals made a secret deal with the Murdochs that would keep both families out of court.
According to a witness statement from the Duke of Sussex, the Queen and company agreed not to sue NGN in exchange for a settlement and an apology.
Harry says that when the Murdochs failed to apologize, the Queen threatened to sue, but Charles put a stop to her retaliation.
Harry also claims that Prince William received an undisclosed payout from The Sun as a settlement for the phone-hacking suit.
Naturally, Harry was excluded from all of this lucrative wheeling and dealing.
Yes, folks, it’s like someone decided to write a mash-up of Succession and The Crown!
Scandalous stuff to be sure, but in court on Wednesday, Harry’s lawyer insisted that his client’s testimony should in no way be taken as a slight against his legendary grandmother.
In fact, Harry insists that the Queen was innocent of any Murdoch-related shenanigans.
His latest filings indicate that the Queen knew about the Murdoch deal, but it seems she wasn’t happy about it.
At least, that’s what Harry thinks.
“If it needs to be said – and apparently it does – this is no criticism of the Queen or his family, and he accepted it, because he had to,” said Harry’s attorney David Sherborne.
Sherborne added that Harry had been “kept out of the loop” and only learned of the deal years after the fact.
The lawyer apologized to the court for Harry’s absence, explaining that the Duke’s presence was required in California this week.
Unfortunately, Harry won’t be able to use a similar excuse to get out of attending the coronation next week.
That’s a shame, as this week’s courtroom developments are sure to make that tense family reunion even more awkward!
