What did Prince Harry testify in a London court? 2:32

London (CNN) -- Prince Harry was emotional in court as he concluded eight-hour testimony in his lawsuit against a top British newspaper editor, admitting he would feel an "injustice" if the judge dismissed his wiretapping claims.

Asked by his lawyer how the experience of giving evidence had been, the Duke of Sussex was moved and, after a long pause, said "it is too much".

"All my life, the press deceived me, covered up the misdeeds and sitting here in court knowing that (the defendants have) the evidence in front of them and for (opposition counsel) Mr. Green to suggest that I am speculating ... I'm not sure what to say about it," the duke said.

• Prince Harry testifies in phone-hacking case against British media

The flash of emotion came at the end of the testimony — the first by a senior royal since 1891 — which lasted two days and covered extensive coverage of Harry's childhood, adolescence and 20s.

The duke is suing Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN), accusing its holders of wiretapping and using other illicit means to gather information about his life between 1996 and 2009.

advertising

Green, MGN's lawyer, pressed Harry on Tuesday about the details of his wiretapping allegations, saying there is "not a single element of call data at any point" between Harry's phone and any Mirror Group reporters.

"If the court found no evidence of wiretapping, would you be relieved or disappointed?" Green challenged the duke during a tense exchange toward the end of the two-day interrogation.

"That would be speculating, I'm not sure if I would be relieved or disappointed," Harry replied. The duke told the court he undoubtedly believes the wiretapping was on an "industrial scale" in "at least three documents", adding that it would be an "injustice" if his claim was unsuccessful.

"Do you want your phone hacked?" asked Green, to which the Duke replied, "No one would want your phone hacked."

Harry sometimes appeared nervous and uncomfortable during cross-examination, but gained confidence as the session progressed, at times confronting Green and answering his own questions to the lawyer.

Overall, the prince alleges that around 140 items belonging to the Mirror Group contained information collected through illegal methods. Thirty-three of those articles were considered at trial and discussed in detail by Green and the prince.

On Tuesday, Harry told the court that "every item has caused me distress."

He added on Wednesday that an article titled "Hooray Harry has been left behind," which reported on the end of his relationship with Chelsy Davy, was "hurtful."

The 2007 story "seems to suggest that people are celebrating" the end of the relationship, Harry said, adding that "it's a little cruel."

A court sketch Tuesday shows Harry bearing witness.

He added that another night, when he went to dinner with the late TV host Caroline Flack, he "was so shocked and furious" to discover that two photographers from the IKON Pictures agency were already hiding under a car, "waiting for us to arrive."

Harry said Flack "was always of great interest to the tabloids, she was often harassed." The former "Love Island" host committed suicide in 2020 while awaiting trial for alleged assault, in a case that had sparked intense media interest.

After brief questioning by his own lawyer, David Sherborne, Harry's stretch in the witness box came to an end on Wednesday afternoon. Sherborne then began questioning the former royal editor of the Daily Mirror, Jane Kerr, the author of some of the stories considered.

The saga of the courts is unprecedented in modern times; a senior royal has not testified in court since Harry's great-great-grandfather, the future King Edward VII, took the stand over a game of baccarat gone wrong in the late nineteenth century.

But Harry has been unapologetic in his efforts to force reform on British tabloids, which have long insisted they subjected him to intrusion and ruined many of his personal relationships.

The trial began on May 10 and is expected to last seven weeks.

MGN is contesting most of the allegations, arguing in its court documents that some claims were filed too late and that in all four cases there is insufficient evidence of wiretapping.

In court documents released last month, the publisher apologized for a case of illegal information gathering nearly 20 years ago. That incident involved a private investigator, who was paid by the Sunday People, a tabloid owned by the same group, 75 pounds ($95) in 2004 to gather information on the Duke of Sussex while he was in a London nightclub.

CNN's Jessie Gretener, Lindsay Isaac, Hanna Ziady, Niamh Kennedy and Sarah Dean contributed to this report.

News from Prince Harry of the United Kingdom