JUDE LAW today learned that a close family member sold stories about him to the News of the World. The actor was in the witness box at the Old Bailey today, giving evidence for the prosecution on day 50 of the Rebekah Brooks phone-hacking trial, when he was presented with the name by a defence barrister.
Brooks, 45, is accused of conspiring with others to hack phones, misconduct in public office and perverting the course of justice.
She denies all charges against her, along with six other defendants in the case. Here are five things we learned from Law's appearance in court today:
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Press held 'unhealthy' amount of information about Law
Law told the court that press attention intensified after his Oscar nomination for The Talented Mr Ripley in 2001. "There seemed to be an unhealthy amount of information that people, or someone, had that meant they had access to my life and my whereabouts," he said. The actor said he was "shocked" when police initially showed him the amount of information that private investigator Glenn Mulcaire had accumulated about him, but he added that he was not surprised, given the level of press attention he had been receiving.
Press knew about Law's secret locations
The daily appearance of photographers became a "regular occurrence", Law told the court, but sometimes they would even appear when he made social plans in secret. He said he would visit places "having arranged to get there secretly, to have a day when the children were not disturbed, and the media, or photographers, would already be there".
Frost and Miller relationships did not overlap
Law was asked whether or not his marriage to Sadie Frost had overlapped with his relationship with Alfie co-star Sienna Miller. The actor told the Old Bailey that the press attention he received had increased during his divorce from Frost, and then again when he dated Miller, but he said the two relationships did not overlap.
Member of Law's 'immediate family' paid by press
Defence barrister Timothy Langdale questioned Law about a News of the World story from 2005, which claimed that Miller was having an affair with the James Bond star Daniel Craig. Asked if he knew that a member of his "immediate family" was paid by the newspaper for leaking information relating to the story, Law said: "I have never been aware of that." He said he knew that a member of his family had spoken to the newspaper but did not know money was involved until today. In what the Daily Telegraph describes as "a moment of drama", Langdale handed the actor a piece of paper with the name of the relative on it, but this person remained unidentified to the court.
Law confronted Daniel Craig about Sienna Miller affair
Law told the court he first became aware of rumours about the affair around the time the couple went to the wedding of Miller's sister, Savanah, in the West Country. A News of the World story with the headline "Sienna Cheats On Jude" included a line telling readers that the paper's "source" had said that "Jude called Daniel Craig demanding to know how he could do this to a friend". Law confirmed today that he did ring Craig directly to confront him about the alleged affair. However, he could not remember whether that was before or after the paper broke the story and said he had not left a voicemail about it.
The trial of Brooks continues.
