Prince Harry and his ex-girlfriend Chelsy Davy dated on and off throughout the noughties, calling it off once and for all in 2011.
The two clearly had a strong connection, and according to new court documents filed by Prince Harry's lawyer, their relationship might have continued were it not for alleged press intrusion into their private lives (of course, there is no guarantee that this would have been the case—relationships are obviously complicated).
In short, though, Prince Harry appears to blame Mirror Group Newspapers, publishers of the Daily Mirror, for at least partly causing the breakdown of his and Davy's relationship.
This has emerged as part of a court case against MGN which began this week.
In one document seen by the Guardian, lawyer David Sherborne wrote that Harry "became immediately suspicious of anyone named in stories about him and felt that he could not trust anybody, even at such a young age. It also caused great challenges in his relationship with his ex-girlfriend Chelsy Davy, and made him fear for his and her safety."
Sherborne continued, "Every time he was in a relationship, or even a rumored relationship, that whole person’s family, and often their friends, would be 'dragged into the chaos' and find themselves the subject of unlawful activity on the part of MGN."
The lawyer went on to claim that MGN journalists followed the prince and Davy to Mozambique, where they had wanted to "enjoy some peace and quiet," and said that the couple was never alone.
He concluded, "Ultimately, MGN’s activities led Ms Davy to make the decision that 'a royal life was not for her,' which was 'incredibly upsetting' for the Duke of Sussex at the time. They also caused their circle of friends to become smaller and smaller, meaning that friendships were lost entirely unnecessarily, and led to 'huge bouts of depression and paranoia.'"
Harry's case against MGN is one of several he's currently involved in, including the one against Associated Newspapers which brought him to London in March to testify. The duke is expected to testify in the case against MGN this coming June.
The example of Davy was presumably used as just one illustration of the ways Harry perceived tabloid journalists to be making his life more difficult. Of course, both parties have since moved on. Harry himself is now married to Meghan Markle, with whom he shares two children, while Davy is married to Sam Cutmore-Scott, and has one son with him.
