Exclusive: Ronan Keating sues Rupert Murdoch’s News UK in phone hacking claim
Ronan Keating has filed a lawsuit against the owner of the Sun, becoming the latest celebrity to seek damages from Rupert Murdoch’s media empire over alleged phone hacking.
The former Boyzone star has hired lawyers at specialist phone hacking firm Hamlins to file a claim against News Group Newspapers (NGN), part of Murdoch’s News UK.
City PM understands Keating is seeking compensation worth hundreds of thousands of pounds from his claim, which relates to a series of articles published primarily during the 1990s.
Keating has accused the publisher of using unlawful information gathering — a term that refers to phone hacking as well as other methods such as the use of private detectives.
The articles appeared in the Sun as well as News of the World, which was published by NGN before closing in 2011 in the wake of the phone hacking scandal.
News UK has not admitted liability for phone hacking at the Sun and always said that incidents were restricted to News of the World.
The High Court case, which was filed on 28 April according to data from litigation analytics company Solomonic, forms part of a group litigation action made up of over 50 other claimants, including Prince Harry.
Cheryl Tweedy, Lily Allen, Noel Fielding and Ray Winstone are among other celebrities involved in the suit.
The claims highlight the continued impact of the phone hacking scandal on Murdoch’s media empire.
NGN fell to a loss of £68m in its most recently available annual accounts to June 2019 after forking out £54m on legal costs and damages.
Sir Elton John, Heather Mills and Elizabeth Hurley were among the celebrities to secure payouts for phone hacking last year.
Despite the hefty litigation costs, Murdoch’s media empire has proved relatively resilient amid a wider downturn in newspaper revenue caused by the coronavirus crisis.
The Sun, which is the UK’s best-selling newspaper, launched a US version of its website in January as it looks to expand its online presence across the Atlantic and cash in on demand for entertainment and royal coverage.
Meanwhile The Times and the Sunday Times, which are also published by News UK, have enjoyed a surge in digital subscriptions.
The group is looking to further grow subscriptions through the launch of Times Radio, a new talk radio station that has been slated as a rival to BBC Radio 4.