Editor claims she kept news of Kate’s pregnancy with Prince George a secret for days

Being friends with a journalist can be tricky, especially if you happen to be in the public eye.

Being friends with the future King of England and his brother while working for a British tabloid is another kettle of fish entirely.

But Charlotte Griffiths, the current editor at large of the Mail on Sunday, claims she was so close to Prince William that she chose to keep the now-Princess of Wales’ first pregnancy a secret from her editor, despite it being the scoop of the year, so to not “cross a line”.
William and Kate pictured leaving hospital three days after her pregnancy was announced in 2012. (Getty)
The sensational claim was made in the High Court of Justice in London overnight during the ongoing legal battle against Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL), the publisher of the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday.

The court action was brought about by a group, including Prince Harry, Sir Elton Johh, his husband David Furnish, and Elizabeth Hurley, who have accused ANL of alleged unlawful information gathering.

This trial, which began in January 2026, involves claims of privacy breaches, including phone tapping and hiring private investigators.
Journalist Charlotte Griffiths claims she did not share news of the impending birth with her editor. (PA/AAP)
ANL has denied the allegations.

According to media reports, Griffiths told the court she learned Catherine, then the Duchess of Cambridge, was pregnant with her first child when she attended a house party.

“Friends invited me to a country weekend in the last week of November/first weekend of December 2012, which both Prince William and Kate Middleton were also expected to attend,” she told the court.

“William arrived solo on the Friday and explained that Kate was suffering with morning sickness.

“The fact that she was pregnant with their first child would have been big news and St James’s Palace only confirmed it the following Monday because she had to be admitted to hospital.”

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Despite knowing it was the scoop of the century, Griffiths claimed she “decided to keep it to myself”, something she said angered the publication’s then-editor Geordie Greigm when he found out.

“Geordie found out that I had known and was quite annoyed that I hadn’t reported it to him on the Friday ahead of the Palace statement on the Monday, as we would have scooped the rest of the press,” she told the court.

“But it was information I had learned at a private event and that I was attending in a personal capacity, so I treated it as such.

“I missed a scoop to maintain my friendships and because I knew where the line was and had decided not to cross it.”

Griffiths also revealed in a witness statement that she had interacted socially with Prince Harry a number of times, including at a party where she alleged Harry stayed up all night, despite having to attend a high profile royal event the next day.
News outlets report that the then Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were expecting their first child on December 4, 2012. (PA Images via Getty Images)
“I have been told that call records show a call at 2.50am and three text messages at 10.11 being exchanged by me and Prince Harry on June 9, 2012, and asked whether I remember what that was about,” she said.

“I have never hacked or tapped a phone. The records I have been shown had nothing to do with a story or my job.”

Griffiths claims while she could not initially remember how she got Harry’s phone number, she later remembered he sent it to her via Facebook in 2011.

“I do remember that around that date, I had been out at a club night with our mutual friend, Arthur, who then invited me back to his house for an after party,” she said.

“He told me that Prince Harry would let me in if I made it there first.
Prince Harry pictured in 2012. (Getty)
“The music was loud and they didn’t hear the doorbell, so Arthur advised me to call and text to be let in.

“That particular night stuck in my mind as I remember it was around the time of the Trooping of the Colour and we all thought it was quite funny that Prince Harry had stayed up all night and said he had to go to that or something related in the morning.”

But Barrister David Sherborne, who is representing the group taking action against ANL, suggested to Griffiths that her story was not true.

He said she ‘invented’ her story about William announcing the news of Catherine’s pregnancy to a group.

He instead suggested she had used private investigators who engaged in unlawful acts to write articles in the claim related to Sir Elton and Hurley.

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However, Griffiths said that was “incorrect”, and also denied his suggestion that it was an example of her “making up” connections with the royal family.

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She said she had ‘sources’ for the information that appeared in stories she wrote about Sir Elton John and Elizabeth Hurley.

Prince Harry was a surprise attendee when the trial started in January and was among those to give evidence.

He attended court for four days, and disputed claims reporters used legitimate sources to publish revealing details of his life and became emotional when revealing the toll of the British media’s intrusions in his life.
Prince Harry leaves court in January after giving evidence. (Getty)
“They continue to come after me. They have made my wife’s life an absolute misery,” he said as he choked back tears.

Prince Harry also spoke about his state of mind in a 23-page witness statement.

He said he was “paranoid beyond belief” about how stories made it into the press.

The hearing is expected to conclude this month, with a judgement to be handed down later.