Journalist 'regrets' hacking Kate Middleton's phone on Natale giorno 

Journalist 'regrets' hacking Kate Middleton's phone on Christmas Day

Former News of the World royal editor Clive Goodman has told a court he regrets hacking Kate Middleton\'s phone on Christmas Day.

The perjury trial of the paper\'s former editor Andy Coulson heard Mr Goodman wished he had never hacked the now-Duchess of Cambridge\'s voicemail 155 times, including once on Christmas Day 2005 to check whether William had left her a message.

Mr Goodman, 57, was working for the tabloid when he and private investigator Glenn Mulcaire were arrested in August 2006 over phone-hacking.

The court has heard the pair both pleaded guilty and Mr Goodman was sentenced to four months\' imprisonment.

Prosecutors claim Coulson, 47, lied while giving evidence in the 2010 perjury trial of former MSP Tommy Sheridan when he said he did not know that Mr Goodman and Mr Mulcaire were involved in phone hacking before they were arrested.

Coulson, a former director of communications at Downing Street, denies the charge.

Jurors at the High Court in Edinburgh were shown documents on Friday stating Kate\'s phone was hacked 155 times, Prince William\'s 35 times and Prince Harry\'s nine times.

Mr Goodman, giving evidence for a third day, was asked by Coulson\'s defence QC Murdo Macleod how he felt about hacking Harry\'s phone.

He said: "Now it feels very wrong. I\'ve had a lot of time to reflect on this and it\'s not something I\'m proud of. I\'d dearly love to be able to move on but no one seems to let me.

"I\'m not proud of it. It happened and it happened in so unique an environment."

Asked about hacking Kate\'s phone on Christmas Day 2005, more than five years before she married William, he told the court: "I did it. I wish I hadn\'t but I can\'t take it back."

He said it was "just to see if there was a message from Prince William".

"I was seeing if there was a story we might be able to use."

Earlier, the jury was shown emails from Coulson to Mr Goodman describing his column as "way off the pace" and asking for stories "of substance".

Asked by Mr Macleod about his relationship with Coulson, Mr Goodman said it had previously been good but became "more and more difficult" and by the time he left it was "cool".

Mr Macleod put it to the witness that he was "under-performing" at the paper. Mr Goodman denied this was the case.

Another email sent by a senior staff member in the same month described Mr Goodman\'s general attitude as "poor and verges on arrogant".

Mr Goodman said the defence had "picked out a handful of emails showing me in a very poor light".

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