Barrymore v News Group Newspapers Limited: ChD 1997

The newspaper defendant sought to publish information about features of an intimate homosexual relationship. The plaintiff sought to prevent it.
Held: The injunction was granted.
Jacob J said: ‘The fact is that when people kiss and later one of them tells, that second person is almost certainly breaking a confidential arrangement.’
The court drew a distinction between the disclosure of the existence of a sexual relationship which might not amount to a breach of confidence and the publication of details about what one party of the relationship said to the other about the first party’s other relationships in particular marital relationship, which crossed the line to a breach of confidence.

Judges:

Jacob J

Citations:

[1997] FSR 600

Jurisdiction:

England and Wales

Citing:

CitedStephens v Avery ChD 1988
The parties had been friends and had discussed their sex lives. The defendant took the information to a newspaper and its editor, the second and subsequent defendants who published it. The plaintiff sought damages saying the conversations and . .

Cited by:

CitedTSE and ELP v News Group Newspapers Ltd QBD 23-May-2011
The claimants had obtained an injunction preventing publication of details of their private lives and against being publicly named. The newspaper had not attempted to raise any public interest defence. Various publications had taken place to breach . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Media, Information

Updated: 15 May 2022; Ref: scu.440114