Prince Harry back in UK for Daily Mail ruling as King Charles withdraws Buckingham Palace offer

Prince Harry is set to discover the result of his High Court case against the Daily Mail's publisher today after returning to the UK.

The Duke of Sussex arrived on Monday evening and will be in the country when the judgment is published on Tuesday afternoon. Mr Justice Nicklin will deliver his written ruling at 2pm, following an 11-week trial earlier this year.

Harry is part of a group of household names, including Baroness Doreen Lawrence, Sir Elton John, David Furnish, Liz Hurley, Sadie Frost and Sir Simon Hughes, who alleged acts including voicemail interception, landline tapping and obtaining information by deception (also known as "blagging"), carried out by private investigators, freelance journalists and ANL staff.

ANL strongly denies the claims, saying it "has established a complete defence to all parts of the claims on the merits" and that the cases have been brought too late.

What happened with Buckingham Palace?

The duke's accommodation arrangements descended into chaos. His spokesman said it was "disappointing" that the offer from the King to stay at Buckingham Palace had been "withdrawn at the last moment," with the looming judgment given as the reason.

It is understood Harry initially turned down the offer for himself and his family on Saturday, before making a U-turn later in the day and asking to stay himself. The Palace said appropriate hospitality and staffing provision was no longer available, and that the legal case had complicated the matter and could compromise the King's constitutional position.

Questions have been raised on the Sussex side as to whether the offer was ever intended to be available once Harry had accepted it. He is said to have acted in good faith throughout the process. Harry and his team are understood to be frustrated that the reasons given for the withdrawal shifted from not accepting the accommodation to the forthcoming judgment.

What did Harry say in court?

During around two hours of cross-examination in January, Harry said he could not complain about some of the 14 articles in his case at the time "because of the institution I was in." He also said in his written evidence that "knowingly false" information was added to stories to "put me off the scent," to conceal unlawful methods including voicemail interception.

ANL said its journalists provided a "compelling account of a pattern of legitimate sourcing," including friends and "leaky" social circles, press officers, previous reporting and stories from other newspapers.

What else is Harry doing in the UK?

The duke's first public event will be an Invictus Games Foundation conference at Chatham House, marking one year to go until the 2027 Games in Birmingham. The event will bring together members of the Invictus community, experts and policymakers, including veterans minister Calvin Bailey.