Love Actually star wins hacking case

KRIS MARSHALL has settled a damages action over phone hacking, the High Court has heard.

The British actor, inset, is who best known for his roles in Love Actually and the BBC television series My Family and Death In Paradise, received “substantial damages” from News Group Newspapers (NGN), publisher of The Sun and the now-defunct News Of The World.

His lawyers yesterday told a judge in London that the actor, who also featured in a BT advertising campaign from 2005 to 2011, had settled his claim against NGN for an undisclosed sum.

He claimed that he was targeted by NGN staff because of his popularity and had his voicemails hacked and private information obtained by deception.

During a remote High Court hearing, Mr Justice Mann was told Mr Marshall had identified a number of ‘suspicious’ articles containing private and confidential information which were published between 2002 and 2010.

His lawyers told the court that during this time, Mr Marshall used his voicemail extensively, particularly when on set filming. The News Of The World folded in 2011 after details emerged of extensive phone hacking at the newspaper. NGN accepted Mr Marshall’s privacy had been invaded by the defunct title’s staff and such activity should never have taken place, but made no admission of liability in relation to allegations against The Sun. It also offered a full apology via its legal team.