Charlotte Church says teen years were 'poisoned' by 'abuser press'

What did you miss?

Charlotte Church has said she feels her teen years were "poisoned" by her "inescapable abuser - the press".

The Welsh singer was one of a number of high-profile people who spoke to ITV documentary Tabloids on Trial about their experiences of being targeted by the tabloid press.

Prince Harry, Hugh Grant, Paul Gascoigne and Gordon Brown also spoke about what had happened to them, with Grant admitting he is "bitter and determined to exact justice".

What, how, and why?

Charlotte Church has opened up on how it felt to be the victim of press intrusion during her early career, saying her teenage years were "poisoned" by it and branding the press "an inescapable abuser".

The singer was speaking on ITV documentary Tabloids on Trial, where she recalled becoming suspicious that her phonecalls were being listened to, and having photographers following her as she navigated growing up.

She said: "That whole period of my life was coloured by what the tabloid press were trying to do to us, because they kind of poisoned it in a way."

Church added: "From the ages of 15 to 21 I had an inescapable abuser - the press."

She also called her experiences "so dehumanising" and "such a violation" - but she was far from the only high-profile person to share her experiences.

Hugh Grant, a key witness at the Leveson Inquiry, also spoke about the intense press attention on his life, saying: "I seemed to have no privacy at all. Wherever I went, whatever I did, there was a photographer waiting."

The actor claimed there had been microphones placed in window boxes outside his house and in his car, even claiming his flat was once broken into.

Grant said: "These people live above the law and the police, I'm afraid at that stage, were as dangerous as the reporters. I remember my girlfriend getting mugged...if you called the police about anything you could be sure the first person to turn up on the doorstep would be a reporter, not an officer."

He also added: "I don't hold massive grievances against the foot soldiers who did this stuff, but I remain bitter and determined to exact justice on the executives who commissioned this stuff."

Grant recently accepted an out of court settlement, saying he felt it would be too high a price to pursue the claim in court as he had been advised that if he had to pay both sides' legal costs it would be in the region of ￡10 million.

"Much as I want these things to come to light in a trial, I shied at that fence, 10 million quid. It's too much," he said.

What else happened in Tabloids on Trial?

Prince Harry gave a glimpse into how much his own legal battles with the press had impacted on his family relationships during the documentary.

Asked whether he felt life was too short to pursue his claims after the Royal Family's recent health troubles, he said: "My father and my sister-in-law, and me following through on these legal battles, are two completely different things."

On whether it had caused the rift between him and his family, he said: "That's certainly a central piece to it but that's a hard question to answer because anything I say about my family results in a torrent of abuse from the press.

"For me, the mission continues, but yes it has caused part of a rift."

Asked what his grandmother, the late Queen, would have made of his legal battles he said: "She knew how much this meant to me and she'd very much up there going, 'see this through to the end'. Without question."

What the tabloids have said about the claims

News Group Newspapers said: "In 2011 an apology was published by News Group Newspapers to victims of voicemail interception by the News of the World.

"The company publicly committed to paying financial compensation and since then has paid settlements to those with proper claims. In some disputed cases, it has made commercial sense to come to a settlement agreement before trial to bring a resolution to the matter.

"As we reach the tail end of the litigation News Group Newspapers is drawing a line under the disputed matters. The civil proceedings have been running for more than a decade and deal with events 13-28 years ago.

"It is common practice and indeed encouraged in litigation to seek to settle claims outside court where both parties agree without the cost of a trial."

Mirror Group Newspapers said: "We welcomed the judgment in December 2023 that gave the business the necessary clarity to move forward from events that took place many years ago.

"Where historical wrongdoing took place, we apologise unreservedly, have taken full responsibility and paid compensation."

Associated Newspapers said: "To repeatedly generalise about tabloids and, by inference, associate the mid-market Mail titles, which have always emphatically denied voice interception, with The News Of The World and Mirror Group - which have admitted phone hacking - is both disingenuous and dishonest."

The Met Police did not respond to the documentary.

Tabloids on Trial is available to stream on ITVX.

Read more:

• Hugh Grant Speaks Out After Reaching Settlement With The Sun Publisher Over Privacy Court Case (HuffPost, 4 min read)

• Prince Harry Claims His Fight Against UK Tabloids Played A Role In His Family Fallout (HuffPost, 2 min read)

• Gerry McCann urges Labour to have ‘courage’ to tackle the press (PA Media, 2 min read)