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Prince Harry, Elton John and the other claimants involved in their privacy lawsuit are facing a multi million dollar legal bill after losing their case against a newspaper publisher.
In a ruling published on Friday, Mr Justice Nicklin instructed the seven well known claimants to make an interim payment of $13 million (£9.54 million) toward the legal expenses Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL), the company behind the Daily Mail, spent defending the case.
The group, which also includes Elizabeth Hurley and John’s husband David Furnish, has been ordered to make the first payment by 4pm on 28 August.
The claimants had taken legal action against ANL over allegations of unlawful information gathering, including phone hacking. Following a trial, Justice Nicklin rejected their claims on 7 July.
In Friday’s judgment, he said the remaining costs should be paid on an "indemnity basis", which means Prince Harry and the other claimants will be required to contribute to ANL’s legal expenses without the publisher having to demonstrate that every amount was reasonable.
Nicklin said the case had been built on "speculative and inferential" grounds and described the claimants’ conduct as "unreasonable to a high degree".
During a hearing last month, lawyers representing ANL said the publisher’s legal costs had reached around $47 million (£34.5 million). The claimants, meanwhile, reportedly had insurance covering slightly more than $22 million (£16 million).
Justice Nicklin also pointed out that ANL’s claimed expenses appeared "excessive", suggesting the claimants could ultimately avoid paying the entire amount.
"I regard a claim for costs in excess of £34 million as, on its face, excessive and as giving rise to real concerns as to whether all of the costs now claimed by Associated were reasonably incurred and are reasonable in amount," he wrote, according to BBC News.
The other claimants include actress Sadie Frost, politician Sir Simon Hughes and campaigner Baroness Doreen Lawrence. They have until 2 October to challenge the ruling through an appeal.
ANL representatives described Friday’s decision as "a devastating critique of an attempt to destroy a newspaper and the reputations of its journalists, editors and executives".
The ruling comes shortly after reports emerged that Prince Harry, Meghan and their children Archie and Lilibet are set to return to the U.K. later this month, following six years of living in California.
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Barry Mitchell, who served as Queen's second bassist, has died.
Greg Brooks, the band's official archivist, confirmed Mitchell's death through a post on Facebook.
"Terribly sad news just received that early Queen bass player, Barry Mitchell, has passed away," he wrote, sharing a vintage black-and-white image of Mitchell. "His anecdotes at the convention were fascinating and offered rare insight. He will be greatly missed."
No details about Mitchell's age or the circumstances surrounding his death have been made public.
Mitchell took over from Queen's first bassist Mike Grose in 1970, although his stint with the band lasted only a few months. Between August 1970 and January 1971, he played 13 shows with Freddie Mercury, Brian May and Roger Taylor.
Following Mitchell's exit, the three musicians brought in Doug Bogie for two performances before John Deacon became their bassist in February 1971, forming the iconic line-up behind the We Will Rock You group.
Speaking to Rolling Stone in 2018, Mitchell was questioned about his decision to leave Queen. He initially responded humorously, saying he was "fired because they thought I was useless".
He later acknowledged that he "wasn't enthusiastic enough about their music" at the beginning of Queen's career.
"This didn't necessarily go in the direction I wanted to go," he said. "At the time, they weren't at all the cult band you all know. I didn't see the potential. It's crazy to say this now but it's the truth."
Before becoming part of Queen's early history, Mitchell was a member of Crushed Butler, a group that was eventually renamed Tiger.
According to his Facebook page, Mitchell is survived by his two daughters.
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