The so-called "Wagatha Christie" trial between Coleen Rooney and Rebekah Vardy is set to reach a conclusion today (Friday).
In a viral social media post in October 2019, Mrs Rooney, 36, said she had carried out a "sting operation" and accused Mrs Vardy, 40, of leaking "false stories" about her private life to the press. The wife of former England star Wayne Rooney publicly claimed Mrs Vardy's account was the source behind three fake stories she had posted on her private Instagram account.
Mrs Vardy, who is married to Leicester striker Jamie Vardy, denied leaking the stories and sued her fellow footballer's wife for libel, while Mrs Rooney defended the claim on the basis her post was "substantially true".
READ MORE: Coleen Rooney shares family update ahead of 'Wagatha' verdict
Coleen said how she had shared fake stories to her Instagram account and set it so that only Rebekah's account could see it. Those stories then went on to appear in The S*n newspaper and other media outlets.
Mrs Rooney earned the nicknamed "Wagatha Christie" for her investigative skills in uncovering what she claimed had taken place. Rebekah categorically denied the accusation and said several people had had access to her account.
But the row caused a media storm, with millions of people hooked waiting to see what the latest development would be. With a verdict due today (July 29), we've taken a look back at everything that has unfolded so far.
The three fake stories
Coleen said she deliberately planted three stories for the account to pick up and "sell" to The S*n. Croxteth-born Coleen, who met Wayne when he was aged 12, first spoke out about the "leaked" gossip back in January 2019.
Mexico gender selection
The first story, which was published by The S*n on August 15, was about her and husband Wayne Rooney heading to Mexico to look into gender selection treatment. The so-called source claimed Coleen would love to have a daughter and so had flown out to Mexico where the controversial treatment is legal.
“Coleen loves her boys more than anything, but she’s never been shy about admitting she would also love a daughter. That would really complete the set for her and Wayne.
“But she has also said that if she does have another boy they would be happy.”
Fancy Strictly?
Next came a story on September 28 about Coleen eyeing up a return to TV by holding talks with the BBC about signing up for Strictly Come Dancing next year. It spun into more reports claiming Wayne had begged his wife not to do it.
It said: "Coleen could well do Strictly next year, but in the meantime has other TV stuff lined up. It was not possible this year due to travelling back and forth from America but it cannot be ruled out.
"Coleen is also really passionate about doing fashion stuff, so that is where she will focus her efforts."
Floods at £20m mansion
And the third story concerned the Rooneys' brand new £20m mansion, which Coleen pretended had flooded in the recent wet weather. The source claimed Coleen and Wayne were "devastated" by the destruction, which came just before their planned move back to the UK from Washington, DC.
It said: “Coleen has been hard at work with the architects and builders since she came back to the UK from America with the boys. She wants to get the place perfect for when Wayne moves back permanently from his US footie club to join them in January. She was called in to find the cellar had been flooded. It was really upsetting."
Rebekah hits back
Rebekah, 37, hit back at the accusations made against her account, denying any involvement. Before releasing the statement Rebekah confirmed she was taking legal advice: "Can’t believe I’m even having to write this.
"I’m pregnant & on holiday & am at a loss to why she would do this. I’m now having to take legal advice as I can’t deal with this stress myself when I’m this pregnant."
The pregnant mum said in a statement posted directly to Coleen: "As I have just said to you on the phone, I wish you had called me if you thought this. I never speak to anyone about you as various journalists who have asked me to over the years can vouch for.
"If you thought this was happening you could have told me and I could have changed passwords to see if it stopped. Over the years various people have had access to my insta and just this week I found out I was following people I didn't know and have never followed myself.
"I'm not being funny but I don't need the money, what would I gain from selling stories on you? I liked you a lot a Coleen and I'm so upset that you have chosen to do this, especially when I'm heavily pregnant.
"I'm disgusted that I'm even having to deny this. You should have called me the first time this happened (broken heart emoji)."
Danielle Lloyd speaks out
Danielle Lloyd weighed into the row taking the side of Coleen by posting a series of rat emojis under the original accusations. And then replied to another commenter saying "on a serious note though who does that it’s terrible."
Twitter goes into meltdown
Twitter went into meltdown following the revelations. People on social media praised Coleen for her investigative skills and said she should be hired "to stop leaks at Number 10".
Twitter user, @JayMcKenna87 said: "Scouse women, mate. Elect them all to Parliament, we’ll be sound then." A second user, @JimMFelton also said Coleen should be hired at Number 10: "If number 10 are serious about stopping the leaks they need to hire Coleen."
Channel Four's news reader, Krishnan Guru-Murthy also agreed to get Coleen into Number 10, he said: "Can we get Coleen Rooney to find the 'source' in No 10?", while Pointless presenter Richard Osman said he would vote for any political party that gives the UK a day off so we can enjoy the WAG drama.
British entrepreneur, Frank Khalid posted a hilarious tweet of a VAR decision, he said: "Love this photo! Coleen Rooney has put up a message to Rebecca Vardy accusing her of selling stories about her."
Death threats and vile messages
Rebekah revealed she was receiving vile messages following the very public row. In an Instagram story published on Rebekah's account, she revealed a disgusting message she had been sent by a troll. She captioned the message, which the ECHO has decided not to publish due to its content: "Well played".
Agatha Christie Wikipedia page gets a makeover
An amusing change was made to the famous detective novelist's Wikipedia page to reflect Coleen's work. Under a new heading of "Reincarnation and subsequent true-crime investigations" it said: "Ten years after her death, she was reincarnated as Coleen Rooney, although this did not become apparent for 33 years.
"In 2019, Coleen’s true nature - WAGatha Christie - came to light following a long-term investigation into the “rat” behind tabloid “leaks” regarding her personal life."
Coleen's 14 word statement
Coleen released a further statement about the Vardy S*n row, showing she wasn't backing down from her original claims. Coleen's spokesman said: "It is irrefutable that the leaks came from one account, and one account only."
Danielle Lloyd gets involved again - and Rebekah slams her claims
Danielle Lloyd accused Rebekah Vardy of feeding stories to The S*n to get more headlines for herself and said she'd had similar run-ins with her in the past. Danielle appeared on This Morning alongside Lizzie Cundy, to speak about the explosive row between Coleen and Rebekah.
Danielle, 35, said: "I wasn't shocked, I've had run-ins with Becky before over similar things. I wasn't shocked when I saw who it allegedly was, I think she did it, I think it's a shame because she never thought it'd get out, but it has.
"It's definitely come from Becky's account." But Rebekah Vardy was quick to hit back on Twitter and slammed Danielle's claims.
She said: "Danielle Lloyd making false claims on This Morning that we have had ‘similar run-ins’ is utter b******s. She is just fuming that I didn’t get Jamie recruiting’ for her like she asked me to... On a more serious note I’ve been inundated with messages from everyone but I’m not saying anything more until we’ve finished looking into this situation properly."
Rebekah hires IT experts
Speaking to BBC's Victoria Derbyshire, Rebekah's representatives said she has hired forensic IT specialists to prove her innocence. The representatives said specialists are looking at who has been accessing her account and whereabouts it has been accessed from.
A spokesperson for Rebekah said: "Please refer to Becky’s social media posts. It isn’t true, she is now very upset and stressed so has passed it to her legal team to deal with.
"Such a shame that Coleen didn’t just call her when she had her number."
Jamie Vardy shows support for his wife
Jamie Vardy stayed silent on the issue but he did choose to like his pregnant wife's tweet where she denied responsibility.
Rebekah Vardy's dad says her account 'must have been hacked'
Rebekah Vardy's father said her Instagram account must have been hacked as he hit out at Coleen Rooney. Rebekah's dad Carlos Miranda, 66, defended his daughter.
He told the Daily Mail: "I can't believe a pro's wife would say something like that to another pro's wife without any proof whatsoever.
"Jamie and Wayne played together and it's just awful that people can make accusations like that, especially when Rebekah is pregnant. Her account must have been hacked. I felt I had to say something because my daughter is so upset by the whole thing. Rebekah has only ever had praise for Coleen - I'm just stunned."
"Fighting with a pigeon"
Rebekah Vardy compared her feud with Coleen Rooney to "fighting with a pigeon". Speaking to the MailOnline, Rebekah said that she called Coleen straight away to discuss the post, in which the mum-of-four explained the trap she laid to catch the social media account from her inner circle which was causing the leaks.
But Rebekah claimed that it went nowhere. She told the MailOnline: "I said to her: "Coleen, what on earth have you done?'
'It was not an easy phone call. She said to me: 'I'm not pointing the finger' and I said: 'You have just annihilated me in public and hung me out to dry.' The whole world hates me!
"I thought she was my friend but she completely annihilated me. She said: 'You know, I always really liked you, which makes it harder.'"
When explaining whether the pair argued during the phone call, Rebekah said: "That would be like arguing with a pigeon. You can tell it that you are right and it is wrong, but it's still going to s*** in your hair."
Rebekah said: "Over 24 hours, this has escalated and escalated. I wasn't going to say anything but it has gone so extreme.
"I have been told that I should die, that my children should die, my unborn child should die. It would be unacceptable for anyone. I am tough, but this has made me cry. It is hard to explain how horrible it has been."
Nicola McLean backs Rebekah
Nicola McLean delivered a scathing blow to Coleen Rooney as she told Eamonn and Ruth that Wayne Rooney's wife was "used to being betrayed." Nicola appeared on This Morning alongside Vanessa Feltz to back her friend Rebekah Vardy over claims someone with access to her Instagram account sold stories to The S*n newspaper about Coleen Rooney.
Celeb BB star Nicola argued Coleen should have waited until Rebekah's pregnancy was over to make the accusations and that she shouldn't have done it so publicly.
Nicola said: "She's absolutely devastated, we all know how much upset can be caused by stress when you're pregnant, it's horrific, people have been sending Becky death threats, this level of abuse is horrific.
"I don't know Coleen and I'm not saying she is a bad person, but we know what happens when you post things like that on social media. I think she should have waited a few months."
Vanessa Feltz argued that pregnant women shouldn't get preferential treatment and that Rebekah was "bang to rights'' But then Eamonn asked Nicola if she thought Coleen should be outing other people in her life as well.
And Nicola said: "I don't like to comment on other people's relationships, but I think if Coleen is outing people in her life she should be outing other people in her life as well."
Vanessa disagreed and argued that Coleen had obviously felt very betrayed by Rebekah's actions and so felt she had to speak out. But Nicola immediately hit back and said: "She's used to being betrayed."
Rebekah Vardy mocks Coleen after Jamie's hat-trick
Rebekah Vardy appeared to mock Coleen Rooney after husband Jamie Vardy netted a hat-trick in Leicester City's record-breaking 9-0 Premier League win over Southampton at the end of October.
Rebekah tweeted: "It's...... Jamie Vardy #9," alongside a fist emoji, in an apparent reference to Coleen's bombshell claims that Vardy's Instagram account had been behind the leaking of stories about the Rooneys to reviled tabloid The S*n.
Jamie was one of two Leicester players, alongside fellow striker Ayoze Perez, to bag hat-tricks in the Foxes' staggering demolition of Southampton at St Mary's Stadium.
Stanley Johnson reaches out
Stanley Johnson revealed he reached out to Rebekah Vardy following her row with Coleen Rooney. Speaking on Loose Women the father of Boris Johnson said he messaged her on WhatsApp following the allegations Coleen Rooney made about her.
Stanley said: "I messaged her saying I don't understand what this means, but I just want you to know we're rooting for you. I mean this lady is having a baby very soon and that will be very nice for her.
"She messaged back and said 'thank you for your lovely message it means a lot."
Rebekah launches libel proceedings
All was quiet in the world of Wags, until June 2020 when Rebekah announced she was launching libel proceedings against Coleen. Court records indicate Rebekah filed her claim with the High Court on June 12.
Coleen responds to court action
According to the BBC, Coleen Rooney's legal team said in a statement: "It is disappointing that Mrs Vardy has chosen to issue court proceedings. Coleen feels that the time and money involved could be put to better use; her offer to meet face to face still stands.
"Mrs Vardy's decision to issue court proceedings does at least mean that Coleen's evidence can be made public when the time is right."
Rebekah announces she will appear on Dancing on Ice
In September 2020, Rebekah Vardy announced she was starring in Dancing on Ice during an appearance on Good Morning Britain. But it didn't take long for then GMB presenter Piers Morgan to bring the conversation back to the infamous 'WAGatha Christie' scandal.
Unable to go into the details for legal reasons, Rebekah said: “Look, we tried to sort things out amicably, it just didn’t work. I understand people think it’s ridiculous, but what was I meant to do?
"I need to clear my name. I want to clear my name. I will do whatever that takes. I hope it’s going to be resolved soon. It’s just one of the things that has to go through the process unfortunately now.”
She added: “I found it really tough. But to be fair Piers, in comparison to what some people have gone through with Covid and things like that, it’s incomparable.”
On the same day Rebekah made her announcement, Coleen posted a photo of herself with her four sons, Kai, Klay, Kit and Cass-Mac, on a beach.
Coleen shares a 55 page document ahead of her upcoming court battle
There was an interesting development in the Wagatha Christie saga the following month when Coleen shared a 55 page document that laid out her defence in the upcoming court battle. The document, seen by our sister title Mirror Online, saw Coleen accuse Rebekah of “habitually” leaking stories to the press in return for glowing coverage.
The bombshell filed on October 1 2020 at London’s High Court in response to Rebekah's libel action – also claim that Rebekah:
• Set up pap shots of WAGS during the 2018 World Cup without their knowledge
• Deliberately sat behind Coleen in the stands at Euro 2016 to maximise her own publicity and her guests “abused” FA staff when told to move
• Was the “Secret Wag” columnist who leaked private information about the wives of well-known footballers
• Was accused by Sarah Harding of taking intrusive photographs of her without her consent at the National Television Awards in 2018
The defence went into detail about the fake “Sting Operation stories” which Coleen 'planted to ensnare Vardy ' - including one about her basement flooding, her desire to return to TV and wanting to try gender selection for her next baby. All three stories were fake and led to Coleen alleging on social media that the source of them appearing in the media was Rebekah Vardy’s account - an accusation which Rebekah denies.
The 'Wagatha Christie' case begins in High Court
On Thursday November 19, a preliminary hearing of Rebekah Vardy's high-profile libel battle against Coleen Rooney was held at the High Court. During the hearing, Mr Justice Warby was asked to determine the "natural and ordinary" meaning of Mrs Rooney's posts on Instagram and Twitter which accused Mrs Vardy of leaking the stories.
Mrs Vardy's lawyers argued that the meaning of Mrs Rooney's posts was that she had "consistently and repeatedly betrayed the defendant's trust over several years by leaking the defendant's private and personal Instagram posts and stories for publication in The S*n".
In her written claim filed to the court, Mrs Vardy said she had worried she would lose her baby because of the stress as she was pregnant at the time. She "suffered extreme distress, hurt, anxiety and embarrassment as a result of the publication of the post and the events which followed", her lawyers allege.
Neither Mrs Vardy or Mrs Rooney attended the hearing. Mr Justice Warby said he would pass judgement at 2pm on Friday, November 20 - however this may be to simply grant a stay until next year to allow more time for mediation to take place between both parties.
Judge rules in favour of Rebekah Vardy in first stage of libel case
A High Court judge ruled in favour of Rebekah Vardy in the first stage of her libel case against Coleen Rooney. On Friday, November 20, Mr Justice Warby ruled Coleen Rooney's social media post "clearly identified" Rebekah Vardy as the guilty party.
In October 2019, Coleen, 34, accused Rebekah of leaking three fake stories to the S*n newspaper which had been shared to a private Instagram account. The explosive social media post was dissected in court as Mr Justice Warby said Coleen's message was "a considered post, using wording composed with some care".
In his ruling, Mr Justice Warby said the "natural and ordinary" meaning of Mrs Rooney's posts was that Mrs Vardy had "regularly and frequently abused her status as a trusted follower of Ms Rooney's personal Instagram account by secretly informing The S*n newspaper of Ms Rooney's private posts and stories".
He also rejected Mrs Rooney's contention that she simply referred to Mrs Vardy's Instagram account, rather than Mrs Vardy herself.
The judge ruled: "I certainly do not think that the ordinary reader would take that single word (account), albeit repeated, to indicate that Mrs Rooney remains in doubt about who the wrongdoer was."
He added: "There is nothing in these words, apart from the word 'account', that in any way suggests that the behaviour of which Mrs Rooney is complaining might have been carried out by anyone other than the account holder, Mrs Vardy." Coleen Rooney was ordered to pay the costs of a bill amounting to just under £23,00 following the two hearings.
Legal proceedings put on hold until February
A High Court judge gives Rebekah Vardy and Coleen Rooney a deadline of February 8 to come to some agreement and swerve a trial. The hearing at the High Court heard that both parties had agreed for a "stay" of the proceedings until February 2021, so there could be "one final attempt to resolve the matter without the need for a full trial".
Rebekah speaks out over court case
Rebekah Vardy hinted she and Coleen Rooney could soon settle their differences in an interview with Hello! magazine. The interview came in December 2020, following the hearing at High Court which saw Coleen ordered to pay Rebekah just under £23,000 in costs.
Rebekah told Hello! magazine: "The new year could potentially see a resolution between us. I'm pretty sure the public are sick of reading about it, too."
Rebekah claims partial victory against Coleen in libel case
Parts of Coleen Rooney's defence in her libel battle against Rebekah Vardy were thrown out by a High Court judge. At a hearing in June last year, Mrs Vardy's lawyers asked the High Court to throw out parts of Mrs Rooney's defence as they were "irrelevant or peripheral" to the case.
This included allegations of Mrs Vardy's close relationship with The S*n and her alleged but denied authorship of "The Secret Wag" column. In a judgment delivered on July 7, Mrs Justice Steyn threw out parts of Mrs Rooney's defence but kept some aspects that Mrs Vardy had applied to strike out.
The judge dismissed a claim by Mrs Rooney that her fellow footballer's wife showed "publicity-seeking behaviour" when sitting behind Mrs Rooney in someone else's seat at the 2016 Euros. Mrs Justice Steyn found that even assuming the allegation was true, it would still not help Mrs Rooney's case.
She said: "The fact that a person seeks media coverage of their own attendance at a football match does not make it more probable that they would disclose private information about another person to the press."
The judge said the argument was irrelevant, adding "it would be a waste of time and resources" for the claim to continue. Mrs Justice Steyn also threw out an allegation that Mrs Vardy was leaking about the libel case itself to The S*n.
The judge further dismissed part of Mrs Rooney's defence about how Mrs Vardy had written a statement for the press regulator IPSO after a complaint was made about The S*n. However, Mrs Justice Steyn said the alleged close relationship between Mrs Vardy and the newspaper was "one of the building blocks" of Mrs Rooney's inferential case.
Huge court costs
A preliminary hearing was held in August 2021 to deal with the timetable of the case and any disputes over the parties' legal costs. During a previous hearing in March of the same year, Mrs Rooney's barrister John Samson asked the court to "reject the claimant's cost budget and ask them to review it because, in the words of my lay client, it is grotesque".
At the time, Mrs Vardy's barrister Sara Mansoori said Mrs Vardy's overall budget was "£897,000, the estimated costs of which are £465,842. This compares to Mrs Rooney's estimated costs in her cost budget of £402,312."
However, these estimated costs are likely to have changed after Mrs Vardy applied to have part of Mrs Rooney's defence thrown out
Jamie Vardy's phone could be inspected as part of court case
During the preliminary hearing in August, the judge ruled that footballer Jamie Vardy's phone may be inspected as part of his wife Rebekah's libel battle with Coleen. The High Court heard both women will be using experts to analyse the Instagram data on relevant devices ahead of the trial.
However, the pair had not agreed on the scope of which devices, including phones, tablets or computers, should be included. The court previously heard that other people had accessed Mrs Vardy's Instagram account, including her assistant Caroline Watt, Mr Vardy and his social media manager.
Judge Roger Eastman concluded the Instagram experts should be allowed to access data from other devices that had used Mrs Vardy's account, which could include her husband's phone or computer. Judge Eastman later indicated the full trial in the case will take place in 2022. He added: "I think it is a good idea to get this over with as soon as possible."
Coleen in ‘advanced talks’ over signing £1m deal for "Wagatha Christie" documentary
Next came a story on November 3, that Coleen was reportedly set to sign a £1m deal to make a documentary about her "Wagatha Christie" feud with Rebekah. Coleen apparently wanted to “let the public make their own minds up” and was reportedly in “very advanced talks” over the film, which could be streamed on Netflix or Amazon.
A friend of Coleen told the Mirror Online: “Coleen has remained quiet ever since that famous online post. But this could all change in what could be the TV event of the year.
“Viewers would see all the evidence that Coleen has forensically gathered via her online sleuthing and see why she is convinced that Rebekah leaked the stories about her and others. She is minded to get it all out into the pubic domain and let people make their own minds up. Talks are very well advanced.”
Explosive messages read out as saga returns to High Court
The Wagatha battle returned to the High Court on February 8, 2022.
WhatsApp messages between Mrs Vardy and her agent Caroline Watt were presented to the court, in which the former allegedly referred to Ms Rooney as a “nasty b***” and “a c***”.
Mrs Vardy also told Ms Watt she "would love to leak those stories x". Mrs Rooney's barrister, David Sherborne, said Ms Watt's phone "fell into the sea" shortly after the court ordered it to be searched.
He said: "(It was) most unfortunate because it was only a short time after the court ordered the phone should be specifically searched."
Coleen Rooney's bid to sue Rebekah Vardy's agent rejected by High Court
Coleen Rooney's bid to sue Rebekah Vardy's agent was rejected by the High Court in February.
Mrs Rooney's lawyers previously claimed that Mrs Vardy had leaked information to The S*n either directly or through her agent Caroline Watt "acting on her instruction or with her knowing approval".
Mrs Rooney asked for permission to bring an "additional claim" against Ms Watt for misuse of private information and wanted it to be heard alongside the libel case.
Mrs Vardy's lawyers opposed the application to add the claim against Ms Watt to the libel case.
In a ruling in February, following a two-day hearing, Mrs Justice Steyn refused permission for the additional claim against Ms Watt and refused permission for it to be heard alongside the libel trial.
However, the judge gave the go-ahead for Mrs Rooney to amend her defence case, to include an allegation that Ms Vardy, through Ms Watt, provided information to The S*n about an unnamed professional footballer.
She also gave permission for disclosure of WhatsApp messages between Mrs Vardy and Ms Watt during the relevant period, and allowed Mrs Rooney's application for an order that both parties make a joint request for information to Instagram .
Coleen ordered to pay £65k to Rebekah Vardy’s agent
In a remote hearing in February, Mrs Justice Steyn ordered Mrs Rooney to pay £65,000 towards Mrs Vardy’s agent, Caroline Watt’s, legal costs following the unsuccessful bid to join her to the libel case.
Despite this, a representative for Mrs Rooney stressed the star remains confident she will win the case later this year, reports The Mirror.
In light of the latest developments, Mrs Rooney and her legal team are looking forward to "seeing the results of the further extensive searches" of Mrs Vardy’s WhatsApp messages.
Speaking following the hearing, a spokesperson for Mrs Rooney said the mum-of-four is "pleased that today’s judgment leaves it open to her to bring separate legal action" against Ms Watt, and claimed the ruling "does nothing to alter the fact" that Mrs Vardy's agent will be a witness in the current case.
Rebekah Vardy admits her agent may have leaked Coleen Rooney stories
In the latest dramatic twist in the “Wagatha Christie” saga, Rebekah Vardy admitted her agent could have leaked stories about Coleen Rooney's private life, Mrs Rooney's barrister has claimed in court. Mrs Rooney’s lawyers previously claimed that Mrs Vardy had leaked information to The S*n either directly or through her friend and agent Caroline Watt “acting on her instruction or with her knowing approval”.
On Friday, David Sherborne, for Mrs Rooney, claimed that Mrs Vardy believes Ms Watt may have been the source of the stories according to a witness statement provided on Wednesday. In written submissions, Mr Sherborne said that Mrs Vardy’s new statement “suggests Ms Watt was the source of the leak but claims that (Mrs Vardy) ‘did not authorise or condone her'”.
“It now appears…that she too ‘believes’ that Ms Watt is the source,” Mr Sherborne added. The barrister continued: “The collapse of Mrs Vardy’s case over the last day has been remarkable.
However, Hugh Tomlinson QC, for Mrs Vardy, told the court that his client’s new witness statement did not contain “any change whatever in the pleaded case”. He later said: “We simply don’t know what the true position is in relation to Ms Watt. She’s not communicating with anybody.”
The libel trial begins
A highly-publicised libel trial began on May 10, running over seven days at the Royal Courts of Justice. The two footballers' wives each gave evidence as revelations from the case made daily headlines across the British press.
During the trial, Mrs Rooney's barrister David Sherborne argued that Mrs Vardy had a "habitual and established practice" of leaking information about those she knew - through her friend and former agent Caroline Watt - to The S*n newspaper.
Discussing Mrs Rooney's viral "reveal" post, her barrister added: "It is what she believed at the time... and it is what she believes even more so now that we have got to the end of the case." However, Hugh Tomlinson QC, for Mrs Vardy, said Mrs Rooney had "failed to produce any evidence" that Mrs Vardy had "regularly and frequently abused her status as a trusted follower" of her private Instagram account by passing on information from it to The S*n.
Mr Tomlinson said the libel battle was a "very simple case" when "one clears away the conspiracy theories". He added: "Mrs Vardy's case is and always has been that she did not leak the information nor did she authorise anyone else to leak.
"She does not know to this day what happened," Mr Tomlinson said, adding: "She does not know where this information came from." The barrister added that Mrs Vardy suffered "very serious harm to her reputation" as a result of Mrs Rooney's post.
Judge Mrs Justice Steyn is now due to publish her ruling on Friday (July 29).
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