Noel Fielding and Rhodri Giggs accept damages in phone hacking claim

Bake Off star Noel Fielding and Ryan Giggs’ brother Rhodri are among the latest celebrities to accept an apology and damages from a newspaper group over phone hacking.

News Group Newspapers (NGN) – the publisher of The Sun and the now-defunct News of the World – is announcing the settlement of a string of legal claims at the High Court this morning.

Among the stars who are set to receive apologies and damages former Scotland striker-turned-TV pundit McCoist and David Beckham’s former PA Rebecca Loos.

In a series of 13 statements to the High Court this morning, cases brought against NGN by actress Roxanne Pallett and Coronation Street and Emmerdale star Chris Bisson are also being brought to an end.

Ms Pallett settled a similar phone hacking claim brought against Mirror Group Newspapers last week.

The other people to settle their claims were Babyshambles guitaist Patrick Walden, film and TV producer Bradley Adams, Zoe Grace, Jade Davidson, Rita Tomlinson, Sarah Vincent, and Mary Davidson.

Fielding launched legal proceedings over news articles published between 2006 and 2010, saying he had regularly used voicemails and was “suspicious as to who may be the source of private information” being leaked.

He said coverage of his private life “generated distrust” and caused “considerable distress”, and today accepted damages and a public apology.

Delivering the first of the apologies this morning, Ben Silverstone, representing NGN, said: “The defendant is here today through me to offer its sincere apologies to the claimant for the distress caused to him by the invasion of his privacy by individuals working for or on behalf of the News of the World.

“The defendant acknowledges that such activity should never have taken place and it had no right to intrude into the private life of the claimant in this way.”

Similar statements are being read for all those settling their claims, though the hearing has been disrupted by a breakdown in the live feed for journalists.

The News of the World was shutdown in 2011 at the height of the phone hacking scandal, with a series of criminal trials hearing how the illegal practice was used regularly within the newspaper. Allegations of phone hacking at The Sun have been consistently denied by NGN.

Mr Justice Mann will oversee a hearing later today on phone hacking claims which have not been settled.

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