Charlotte Church: I am so sickened by phone hacking
SINGER Charlotte Church said yesterday she was “sickened and disgusted” by the News of the World hacking her voicemail messages.
She and her parents, James and Maria, accepted £600,0000 damages from News Group Newspapers at the High Court, London.
The court heard that phone hacking directly led to 33 articles appearing in the newspaper about Charlotte Church and her family.
The newspaper targeted her since she was 16.
Ms Church’s lawyer told a judge that the paper “unlawfully obtained her private medical information and details of her personal relationships with her family and friends”.
Stories included an article published about Charlotte’s father having an affair and taking cocaine which was published despite the paper knowing that her mother had just attempted suicide. The singer said money “could never mend” the damage that was done but she planned to put the payout towards protecting herself and her children from further privacy invasions.
What I have discovered as the litigation has gone on has sickened and disgusted me
She added in a statement outside court: “What I have discovered as the litigation has gone on has sickened and disgusted me.
“Nothing was deemed off limits by those who pursued me and my family, just to make money for a multinational news corporation.” She added: “In my opinion, they are not truly sorry, only sorry they got caught.”
Michael Silverleaf QC, for NGN, said: “I am here today to offer my client’s sincere apologies to the Church family for the way they have been treated.”
The settlement includes £300,000 in legal costs.