Prince Harry says he 'won't bring' Meghan Markle back to UK over safety fears

Prince Harry has said he fears negative tabloid narratives around his family could lead to a knife or acid attack against Meghan Markle, were she to return to the United Kingdom.

Harry, in an interview for an ITV1 documentary, Tabloids On Trial, said he "won't bring my wife back to this country" over "genuine concerns" he holds.

Explaining his belief that certain narratives in the press pose a genuine threat to his family, he said: "All it takes is for one lone actor who reads this stuff to act on what they've read.

"And whether it's a knife or acid, these are things that are genuine concerns for me. It's one of the reasons why I won't bring my wife back to this country."

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Prince Harry was speaking for the first time following a "monumental" High Court ruling that he was hacked by Mirror Group Newspapers.

He said he finally feels "vindicated" by the judge's ruling that senior figures at the newspaper group knew about unlawful activities.

The late Queen Elizabeth II knew about his legal fight and gave her blessing, Harry explained.

"We had many conversations before she passed. This is very much something that she supported," he said.

"She knew how much this meant to me, and she's very much up there going, 'see this through to the end', without question."

A judge ruled last December that the Daily Mirror, Sunday Mirror and The People had intercepted Prince Harry's voicemails and unlawfully gained access to his private information.

He said the memory of his mother Princess Diana motivates him to take on the tabloids on issues of intrusion, and he has been left paranoid and distrustful by the hacking.

Prince Harry also revealed that his public court battles against the tabloid press is a core reason for the falling out between him and members of his family.

He said: "I have made it very clear that this is something that needs to be done, it would be nice if we did it as a family.

"It has caused part of a rift."

This is the Talking Royals - our weekly podcast about the royal family, with ITV News Royal Editor Chris Ship and Producer Lizzie Robinson