Prince Harry Wins Damages from Photo Agency 'Splash' That Took Photos of His Bedroom from a Helicopter

The British Royal settled the case after accepting an undisclosed figure on grounds of damages to his privacy in addition to a public apology issued by the news outlet.

34-year-old Prince Harry’s attorney Gerrard Tyrrell represented the former at High Court in London to give a final statement on the case that started with a January incident on which Splash News took pictures of the Duke’s home from a helicopter.

According to the statement, the rural retreat in Oxfordshire, southern England was ideal due to “the high level of privacy it afforded,” but the residence lost that quality after the intrusion from the media, and the couple was forced to leave.

THEY APOLOGIZED

Splash News chartered a helicopter exclusively to take pictures of Harry and his wife Meghan Markle’s former home at low altitude, and the pictures ended up published on several media outlets.

The news agency admitted its wrongdoing in this incident, and they promised to “cease and desist from selling, issuing, publishing or making available the photographs.”

They also vowed to “not repeat its conduct by using any aerial means to take photographs or film footage of the duke’s private home.”

Splash News stated that they "always recognized that this situation represents an error of judgment and we have taken steps to ensure it will not be repeated. We apologize to the Duke and Duchess for the distress we have caused."

STRUGGLING FOR PRIVACY

Being such a prominent member of the Royal Family, Harry has always struggled to protect his private life from the harassment of the press, something that his mother Princess Diana also suffered and lead it to her tragic death.

But this has only increased since he and Markle made public their relationship and became engaged, prompting Kensington Palace to release a rare statement on his name to denounce the media “abuse and harrasement” against his then girlfriend.

THEIR NEW HOME AT FROGMORE COTTAGE

Early in April Harry and Meghan moved to their new home at Frogmore Cottage to await the birth of their first child Archie, another step towards their autonomy from Kensington Palace after splitting their household office.

The 35-acre property located within the Windsor Estate was a gift from Queen Elizabeth II to her grandson and her granddaughter-in-law.

Frogmore House has a special meaning for Harry and Meghan, as it was where they took their engagement pictures in 2017, and also where they held their wedding reception.

Frogmore is a very private place that will leave the recent parents alone to raise their baby and those that come after him. It is only open to the public for three days each year, to use the profits from the tickets for charity.