Names and faces
■ Hugh Grant accepted “an enormous sum of money” to settle a lawsuit accusing The Sun tabloid of unlawfully tapping his phone, bugging his car and breaking into his home to snoop on him, the actor said Wednesday after the agreement was announced in court. Grant, who along with Prince Harry sued News Group Newspapers, said he settled reluctantly because he could have been stuck with a huge legal bill even if he prevailed at trial. Under civil court rules, he would have had to pay legal fees to both sides if he was awarded a penny less than the settlement offer. The amount of the settlement was not disclosed. News Group said in a statement it admitted no liability and said the settlement was in the financial interest of both parties to avoid a costly trial. Grant and others claim that News Group violated their privacy through unlawful activity to access confidential information between 1994 and 2016. Grant said in a witness statement he could never figure out who broke into his fourth-floor apartment in 2011. Two days later, The Sun had a story detailing the interior. He said he was astonished when a private eye hired by The Sun disclosed that employees burglarized Grant’s apartment and placed a tracking device on his car. “Murdoch’s settlement money has a stink and I refuse to let this be hush money,” he said. “I have spent the best part of 12 years fighting for a free press that does not distort the truth, abuse ordinary members of the public or hold elected (members of Parliament) to ransom in pursuit of newspaper barons’ personal profit and political power.” He said he would direct the money to groups like Hacked Off, which was formed after phone hacking revelations in 2011 brought down News of the World and led to a government inquiry into unlawful press practices. Grant, 63, is a board member of the group. Grant’s agreement to settle his claims leaves The Duke of Sussex and 41 others scheduled to go to trial in the High Court in January.
■ Former Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett was rushed to a hospital over the weekend as he was preparing to play in Phoenix. The musician, 74, apologized “for the scare” in a Sunday Facebook post that included a photo of him in a hospital room hooked up to medical equipment. “I’d hoped to power through the Phoenix show but I had a bronchial infection and a last-minute adverse reaction to medication,” Hackett wrote. “Consequently, the medics took me to hospital.” Hackett said he’s recovering and “glad to be feeling OK,” but was upset about his no-show. “I will return to play in Phoenix as soon as possible,” he wrote. It is unclear if Hackett will miss additional shows. Representatives for Hackett were not immediately available to respond Tuesday to The Los Angeles Times’ requests for comment.