The royals and Dan Wootton: Byline Times part 1 of 3-year investigation into how Wootton got information about the royal family

[queentim]

Following their series about the Crisis in British Journalism and MediaToo movement, Byline Times reporters have recently released the first report of the 3 year investigation into the link between the royals and (disgraced) TV presenter Dan Wootton.

The first report reveals how Charles and William were angered that Harry refused to remove the name of an aide (William's aide in Kensington) who was paid cash to leak stories about his wife Meghan, and son Archie. This included investigations by the Met.

As a result, Charles removed the $700,000 granted to support them, which would have seen Harry and Meghan living in Canada and representing the Queen, in an effort to bring them back to the UK by exposing their location in Canada and removing their security. This was the collapse of the 'Sandringham Agreement', which resulted in the signing of the Sussexes media deals.

Some highlights, but can be bought for £3.6:

▪ It followed news that a partner of a key aide to Prince William received £4,000 from The Sun allegedly for stories about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex when Wootton was executive editor.

▪ The Metropolitan Police looked into the alleged leaking but could not go to a judge for a warrant to search royal staff property without knowing the identity of the whistle-blowers.

▪ Two internal royal investigations followed – one involving Simon Case, who is today the embattled head of the civil service facing questions over the Government’s response to the pandemic.

▪ Byline Times has uncovered new photographic evidence of Wootton, the aide and the aide’s partner at a lavish private birthday party Wootton threw for his close friends in a £1,675-a-night hotel suite.

▪ Prince Harry sent formal ‘letters before action’ detailing the claims about Wootton and the palace to News UK.

▪ When the aide’s name was not removed from the legal letters, the Sussexes were cut adrift financially and left unable to protect themselves despite having a security threat level equal to the monarch.

▪ The royal household had thought the threat of exposure would force Harry and Meghan to return to the UK, where their profile could be controlled preventing them from eclipsing the future King

Exploding ‘Megxit’: How Dan Wootton and a Cash-for-Leaks Scandal Split the Monarchy

the weird situation with her family,

Again, this is funny. Focus on Meghan's family was intense. But the royal family is also weird, creepy, bizarre, archaic, outdated, full of rumours and weird relationships. Charles and Andrew are friends with multiple sex offenders. Thats quite the coincidence. One is unfortunate, 5 or 6 becomes a pattern. Charles and Camilla are friends with press, some of whom listened to their private phonecalls and that tape, one of them wrote that disgusting fantasy about Meghan being pelted naked in the streets- apparently a close relationship means mouthpiece so perhaps it wasn't;t his fantasy and originated form Camila

I mean if we want to criticise weird family's, I think the royal family has far more embarrassing, and shameful stories going on than Meghan's.

Of course it does and the treatment of Meghan was particularly disgraceful .

When that vile article about Meghan was published Camilla did nothing. Except party with said tabloid writers of course . So much for campaigning to protect women

Yet they rushed to deny that Kate had hair extensions ….

:Takes Hair Extensions Klaxon from the shelf next to the Baby Botox Klaxon: 😀

The Palace didn’t deny Kate had hair extensions. They were asked if she had a scar on her head and confirmed that she did., and then explained why.

Her scar was being mistaken for hair extensions ( I’m sure Kates would never be so obvious ) and they rushed to correct that .

Contrast that with silence when a man called for Meghan to be paraded naked with excrement thrown at her

Who cares if Kate wears hair extensions, has botox etc. She probably has both, what does it matter?
To rush to deny this sort of thing to me means... yep, that's what she has then!
(and I wouldn't criticise her for that by the way, she is paraded and scrutinised every time she goes out!)

@boxedandribboned

Just say you don’t like the Sussexes and get it over with and save us all a lot of reading.
Thanks.

'rush to deny', is Scobie on here masquerading as a mumsnetter?

😂

the plethora of celeb wedding guests they'd never actually met before.

These threads are so tiring. Aside from Oprah all guests were friends of the bride or the groom. Many of the celebs were guests of the groom.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_wedding_guests_of_Prince_Harry_and_Meghan_Markle

I thought the Clooneys said they had never met H and M ?

I thought the Clooneys said they had never met H and M ?

A quick google will show George Clooney has denied that report. They did know them. He just will not provide information to gossip rags about how they know them. And good for him.

Wasn't quite sure where to post this, but I came across this interview with Olivia Coleman and hadn't heard that she actually moved from London because of paparazzi. I think this supports what Harry and Meghan have been saying about their own experiences, often called an exaggeration here. What she says about the press is very interesting, good for her too:

@Iwantcakeeveryday

That vid is something else. How scary to be pursued like this. And to have to move

I know, its pretty despicable behaviour. Ive seen footage of celebs being pursued and its pretty unpleasant, a group of men following around young women is not ok with me. It shoudn't matter what they do for a living. I watched Cara Delevingne being followed by paps in NY on the street, all around her, very close as she walked down the street. It's horrible.

Meredith Constant - a tik tok content creator I’ve mentioned a few times (another poster on here follows her too) is interviewing Omid Scobie on Friday night (US EST). Sorry I’ve forgotten the time. But she’s put a video up on tik tok announcing it and you can find out there what time if you are interested. You can submit questions ahead of time.

I’m on the other side of the world so I likely won’t be watching it in real time - but I hope it will be recorded so I can catch up later.

Meredith is a very good researcher of RF and, also, American Politics. She has a journalist degree and other stuff I’ve forgotten. Omid used some of her research to write Endgame - she’s acknowledged in his book.

Thanks @ALittleTeawithmilk I don't have TikTok and did look for her on Twitter X, but couldn't find her. I'll have another go, maybe it will be linked on there too

When I read about this I always think of the Britney Spears documentary where she was clearly in the middle of a breakdown and shaved all her hair off and she was surrounded by sweaty middle aged men cackling away and flashing cameras in her face. Then one said years later on the doc ' oh that was awful but we didnt know as much about mental health then' err 20 years ago no one knew about mental health? As Olivia Coleman said why did none of them think ' actually this is not right'. The problem now is everyone with a camera phone is snapping celebs and selling pictured to the tabloids. It's the tabloids that then have a duty not to buy those photos.

I do think it must take a certain type of person... one who is devoid of empathy. I blame the tabloids too... if ever I have clicked on one of them (because I do want to see a particular article) a box pops up in the middle of the screen with 'sell us your gossip' flashing.

It's horrible.

When the tabloids were pursuing Ant McPartlins ex wife in the middle of their rehab Ant campaign, you could almost see that they were buying photos from someone who lived opposite her and was taking pictures of her taking the bins out in her nightie. That is creepy as hell and probably illegal but The Mail bought them and printed them. Even in the u likely event that people are forever onnthe phone tobtheir own personal paps, the tabloids buy these photos and create a market for any old person with a half decent camera phone to send pictures to the tabloids for a quick £50.

yes I followed her because I liked her Avon make up! It was truly awful what they did to her, men hiding in bushes to take unflattering photos in private moments. What did she do? Married a guy when she was young who ended up famous and a loser? She has a job, doesn't court publicity, just goes about her life. It was completely OTT and I just don't think it should be allowed.

People pretend it's all changed from the 80's and 90's, but it hasn't. Its actually worse because now we all have cameras and people are desperate to take people down. You see it on this board every day.

A new article by Byline Times on Wootton

It's not going away, Dan...

https://bylinetimes.com/2023/12/14/witnesses-interviewed-as-police-and-murdoch-probes-into-dan-wootton-continue/

Yup - this stuff isn't going away ANY TIME SOON!

Slowly but surely, the chickens are coming home to roost....

Despite the bully tactics of the tabloid/Murdoch media, their nuclear-grade PR and their literal ARMY of sycophants, the truth will come out. The whole sickening alliance between the royal palaces, venal journalists and their press barons will be blown up for all to see!

Clearly, it's not just Harry life's work. There are many people who find it absolutely outrageous. You understand that media businesses are just that, businesses out to make money for themselves. But what is unconscionable is the royal family (read KC, Camilla, William and Kate) and their palaces colluding with abusive persecutory reporters against their own, to generate positive PR for themselves, as Byline Times and others are reporting on.

And all this while as taxpayers we continue to let the royal family off the hook for BILLIONS.

I hope investigative journalists such as Byline Times and Omid and others keep at it!!!!

@TallerSally I totally agree. I would like to think if I was Harry and I had the resources I would be doing exactly the same. The DCs do tell me I'm like a dog with a bone sometimes!

The symbiotic relationship between the Monarchy/RF and the media is diseased. Everyone know this, they just won't admit it. It really is. Rival households briefing against each other to gain positive headlines, burying unsavoury stories by leaking something about H or M, schmoozing the very worst hacks (Camilla, I'm looking at you). I want it all to unravel, I really do.

I imagine the Press and Private Secretaries of Charles, Camilla, William and Kate are working overtime at the moment...
To me, Harry has shown backbone that those are totally lacking.

Ooh, look what I spotted in the wild - a dishonourable mention of Dan Wootton in a John Crace review of 'villians of 2023' in the Guardian. (Crace is the political sketch writer).

'Wootton was a showbiz hack on the News of the World and the Sun before joining the MailOnline and GB News. Albeit a hack who always thought his own career was far more newsworthy than any of the celebs he wrote about. Where Wootton goes from here is anyone’s guess. He’s believed to be lying low in Scotland, hoping against hope that someone might want him back somewhere. Their loss is our gain.'

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2023/dec/16/john-crace-on-the-villains-of-2023

@AutumnCrow
I will enjoy reading that article, love John Crace, and he nailed it over Wootton. Shame he's in Scotland, I thought he'd gone back to NZ!