Prince Harry admits he made a ‘stupid decision’ by flirting with brunette at party while dating Chelsy Davy
PRINCE Harry has admitted he was “immature” and made a “stupid decision” by flirting with a brunette while dating Chelsy Davy.
The duke was in an on-again, off-again relationship with his former flame for seven years, with Harry today claiming the relationship felt “doomed”.
And he today shed light on the relationship as he testified in the phone hacking trial against the Mirror Group papers.
He admitted he had been “immature” during the relationship with Chelsy, particularly referencing an article in 2005 that detailed claims about his party lifestyle.
Chelsy was said to have been “furious” and gave Prince Harry a “tongue-lashing down the phone”, according to the report at the time.
And in his 55- page submission, Prince Harry today admitted he was “immature” and made a “stupid decision”.
He said: “I had been immature, I hadn’t really thought about my actions and I had made a stupid decision.”
He added that “it was a challenging period for me”.
The identity of the woman was not discussed in court.
And further details of the tumultuous relationship between Harry and Chelsy were revealed in the High Court today.
Harry also discussed another article, ‘Chelsy Is Not Happy’, which claimed Prince Harry’s ex-girlfriend flew into a rage over a visit he made to a lap-dancing club in 2006.
Chelsy “let rip in a string of phone calls” and a “highly placed source” claimed she had gone “berserk”, according to the article.
In his submission, Prince Harry said: “It said she slammed the phone down because she was too angry, and then called back to scream at me for half an hour.”
But he insisted his long-term girlfriend had not been annoyed with him about the reports that he had been given a lap dance.
In his submission, he said: “To the best of my recollection, I don’t think Chelsy did go mad about me going there.
“We did speak about it over the phone, but I promised her that I hadn’t had a lap dance and stayed with the three other cadets that had girlfriends.”
ROYAL IN THE DOCK
It comes as the Duke of Sussex became the first Royal to give evidence in court in more than 130 years.
The last senior royal to be cross-examined in court was King Edward VII in 1891, in what became known as the royal baccarat scandal.
And in cross-examination, which has so far lasted the entire morning, the sixth-in-line to the throne made a string of claims about his life during his teens and 20s.
They include that he struggled at school, was afraid he’d be kicked out of Eton and felt his relationship with ex-girlfriend Chelsy Davy was “doomed”.
In his submission, a softly spoken Prince Harry said he was labelled “the ‘thicko’, the ‘cheat’, the ‘underage drinker’, the ‘‘irresponsible drug taker'” while at school.
And he added: “I thought that… I may as well ‘do the crime’, so to speak.”
He went on to explain he was afraid he would be expelled from Eton over claims he was taking drugs, which he denies.
He added: “Eton had a zero drugs policy in place, and I was extremely worried I was going to be expelled.”
Prince Harry is the first senior royal to be involved in court proceedings since 2002, when the Princess Royal pleaded guilty to a charge under the Dangerous Dogs Act after her pet bit two children in Windsor Great Park.
Cross-examination is expected to last up to two days after the judge granted barristers more time to grill him under oath.
It means Harry will be in the UK longer than for the coronation.
Last month he spent 28 hours here before flying back to California for son Archie’s fourth birthday.
Harry alleges that about 140 articles published between 1996 and 2010 contained information gathered using unlawful methods, and 33 of these have been selected to be considered at the trial.
However, Andrew Green KC, for MGN, said Harry’s claim had “become rather fantastical”.
The publisher has apologised unreservedly to Prince Harry for unlawfully gathering information about him but denies phone hacking.
MGN also argues that some of the claimants brought their legal action too late.
Harry’s claim is being heard alongside three other “representative” claims during a trial which began last month and is due to last six to seven weeks.