Royal news – live: Prince Harry reveals fears of being attacked means he won’t return to UK with Meghan

As he breaks his silence on his successful High Court case, Prince Harry opened up about his mother’s own experience of phone hacking.

Harry won a legal battle against the tabloid press last December as it was ruled he had been a victim of phone hacking.

Speaking in a new ITV documentary about whether the hacking made him paranoid he said: “I think paranoia is a very interesting word because yes, then it could be paranoia, but then when you’re vindicated it proves that you weren’t being paranoid. You know, same with my mother.

“You know, there is evidence to suggest that she was being hacked in the mid-nineties, probably one of the first people to be hacked and yet still today, the press, the tabloid press very much enjoy painting her as being paranoid.

But she wasn’t paranoid, she was absolutely right of what was happening to her. And she’s not around today to find out the truth.”

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s former home, Frogmore Cottage, remains empty more than a year after they officially vacated the property.

Palace officials at the annual Sovereign Grant briefing said there were no new tenants in the Grade II Crown Estate property in Windsor Home Park.

It has been said that Harry has stayed in a hotel on recent visits to the UK, rather than at a royal residence.

The Sussexes were asked to move any remaining possessions out of their UK home close to Windsor Castle in 2023, just weeks after the duke criticised his family in his controversial memoir Spare.

A Palace official said: “During the year, Frogmore Cottage has remained empty.

“I don’t think, at this point, I would speculate on who will be the future occupants of the cottage.”

He added: “The Sovereign Grant has been fully reimbursed for the refurbishment costs of Frogmore cottage when it was initially provided to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and, therefore, there is no cost to the Sovereign Grant other than some routine maintenance, but it would be required for any of the buildings.”

Prince Harry is set to break his silence on his phone-hacking court battle with the tabloid press tonight, as he delves into particular headlines about his personal life.

Looking at a headline from the time about his then-girlfriend Chelsy Davy apparently preparing to split with him, the Prince said: “Harry’s girl to dump him – seems as though they knew something before I even did.”

He also says in an ITV documentary airing tonight: “I think there’s a lot of I guess, paranoia, fear, worry, concern, distrust in the people around you, clearly a headline like that has absolutely no public interest whatsoever.

“There’s a big difference between what interests the public and what is public interest, so what happens in my private life between myself and [my] then girlfriend is exactly that, between us.”

Prince Harry is set to reveal new details on his legal battle with the tabloid press tonight for the first time.

Airing at 9pm on ITV, the duke will sit down with Rebecca Barry for the new documentary, Tabloids On Trial.

In a trailer for the documentary, he is seen describing the immense personal impact the phone hacking scandal had on him and his relationship with his family.

A royal biographer has claimed Princess Diana wished people could have seen love letters she received from Charles during happier times.

Ingrid Seward made the comments at an Oldie magazine lunch, according to The Times, where she said: “Diana told me very shortly before she died that she wished people could see the love letters that she had from Charles.”

She added: “She really wanted people to know that she loved Charles and he loved her. And I always remembered that. And she wanted the boys [Prince William and Prince Harry] to know that,” she continued.

The monarchy is to receive a boost of more than £45 million, with a 53% jump in its official annual income to more than £130 million.

Soaring profits from the Crown Estate to £1.1 billion mean the taxpayer-funded Sovereign Grant, which supports the official duties of the royal family, will increase from £86.3 million in 2024/2025 to £132 million in 2025/2026.

Officials said the increase will be used to help fund the final stages of the 10-year £369 million renovation of Buckingham Palace, keeping it on time and budget.

The boost will be reviewed through legislation in 2026/27 to keep funding of the royal family at a “more appropriate” level, a Palace spokesman said.

The Sovereign Grant report revealed travel expenditure went up by £300,000 at a bill of £4.2m despite there being around 400 fewer visits and less foreign travel than the year before.

My colleague Alexander Butler has the full story:

The King’s annual income from his private Duchy of Lancaster estate was more than £27 million, accounts have shown.

Charles received the money from the Duchy, an ancient portfolio of land, property and assets which is held in trust for the sovereign, in his first full financial year as monarch.

This private Duchy income is separate from the taxpayer-funded Sovereign Grant and has been the personal estate of the reigning monarch since 1399.

It spans more than 18,000 hectares of land in England and Wales and comprises commercial, agricultural and residential properties mostly in Lancashire, Yorkshire, Cheshire, Staffordshire and Lincolnshire.

It gives the monarch a source of income for funding his private activities and some official expenditure, but the breakdown of how the King spends the private money – which is independent of the Government – is not released.

Harry spoke to ITV for a documentary exploring the egregious and illegal methods some journalists used to gain access to the voicemail accounts of celebrities and public figures.

“This is something that needs to be done. It would be nice if we, you know, did it as a family,” he said.

Harry won his privacy case against Mirror Group newspapers last December after a High Court judge ruled his own phone had been hacked.