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In her witness statement, Liz Hurley said the allegation that her home landlines had been tapped “devastated” her.
She said in her written evidence: “The Mail’s unlawful acts against me involve landline tapping my phones and recording my live telephone conversations, placing surreptitious mics on my home windows, stealing my medical information when I was pregnant with Damian and other monstrous, staggering things.”
Hurley continued: “Above all, it was the discovery that The Mail had tapped the landlines of my home phones and tape recorded my live telephone conversations that devastated me.
“I had not come across this brutal invasion of privacy in either of my two battles with the other newspapers. I felt crushed. It represented the ultimate violation of privacy.”
She added: “There’s a vast difference - both indefensible - between someone intercepting a voicemail and someone listening in on every single phone call in your home and concealing a tape recorder and attaching it to your home BT wire to record your live telephone conversations.
“I was seething when I discovered The Mail did this to me.”
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Liz Hurley became very emotional in the witness box, crying as she was shown some of the articles relating to her claim, PA reports.
She said she did not need a break, but took a moment to compose herself, wiping her eyes and nose with a tissue.
In her witness statement, Liz Hurley said the allegation that her home landlines had been tapped “devastated” her.
She said in her written evidence: “The Mail’s unlawful acts against me involve landline tapping my phones and recording my live telephone conversations, placing surreptitious mics on my home windows, stealing my medical information when I was pregnant with Damian and other monstrous, staggering things.”
Hurley continued: “Above all, it was the discovery that The Mail had tapped the landlines of my home phones and tape recorded my live telephone conversations that devastated me.
“I had not come across this brutal invasion of privacy in either of my two battles with the other newspapers. I felt crushed. It represented the ultimate violation of privacy.”
She added: “There’s a vast difference - both indefensible - between someone intercepting a voicemail and someone listening in on every single phone call in your home and concealing a tape recorder and attaching it to your home BT wire to record your live telephone conversations.
“I was seething when I discovered The Mail did this to me.”
Asked by Antony White KC, who is representing Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL), why she did not complain about the 15 articles in her claim at the time they were published between 2002 and 2011, Hurley said it was because from what she remembered, “complaints were for libel”.
She added: “They (the articles) were in essence true. I believe that is because people were listening to me speak.
“I know that is not for me to discuss and to give my opinion on.”
Hurley said: “There were so many deeply hurtful and damaging articles about me in the media. It became just a business of unpleasantness.”
Hurley also told the court that sometimes she would worry if she had said something too loudly, but “there were microphones on the windowsill of my dining room... I was being listened to”.
Hurley said: “Yes, there were leaks, but they were not from my friends.”
Liz Hurley has stepped into the witness box to give evidence in her legal action against the publisher of the Daily Mail.
Wearing an emerald green knitted dress, black suede boots, and carrying a cream handbag Hurley took the oath, PA reports.
She is accompanied in court by her son, Damian Hurley, and is expected to give evidence for a day.
The Duke of Sussex has returned to a court in London for the fourth day of the trial of his legal action against the publisher of the Daily Mail, PA reports.
Harry arrived at the Royal Courts of Justice for a fourth consecutive day around 10.05am on Thursday, after giving evidence for around two hours in his High Court claim against Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL) on Wednesday.
Liz Hurley arrives at the Royal Courts of Justice
Liz Hurley has arrived at the Royal Courts of Justice for the fourth day of the trial of her legal action against the publisher of the Daily Mail.
Hurley is expected to give evidence on Thursday and arrived at the central London court at around 9.45am with her son, Damian Hurley.
Actor Liz Hurley expected to give evidence in court today
Actor Liz Hurley is expected to give evidence at the Royal Courts of Justice this morning as part of the ongoing Prince Harry v Daily Mail trial.
She will be supported by the Duke of Sussex himself, who will return to the High Court on Thursday to support his fellow claimants in their legal action.
Harry gave evidence for around two hours in London on Wednesday, during which he said Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL), which also publishes the Mail on Sunday, made his wife Meghan’s life “an absolute misery”.
A spokesperson for the duke said on Wednesday evening that he would attend court again “to support, and show solidarity with, the other claimants”.
The duke, Elton John and his husband David Furnish, campaigner Baroness Doreen Lawrence, politician Simon Hughes, and actresses Sadie Frost and Hurley are bringing legal action against ANL over allegations of unlawful information gathering.
The alleged unlawful information gathering in the duke’s case relates to 14 articles between 2001 and 2013. ANL has strongly denied wrongdoing.
We will be bringing you all the latest news lines from the High Court throughout the day. Stay tuned.
