The cost of living? War in Ukraine? These topics have faded a bit into the background in the English press in recent weeks. Such is the attention for a libel case between two soccer women, Coleen Rooney and Rebekah Vardy. But it’s a case that satisfies the English predilection for celebrities, football, lawsuits and detectives.
Wagatha Christie: that’s what the 3 million pound lawsuit between the women’s football is now called. It is a contraction of Wag (short for ‘wives and girlfriends‘) and Agatha Christie, author of famous detective novels such as Miss Marple† Hercule Poirot and The Murder on the Orient Express†
The role of Christie is filled by 36-year-old Coleen Rooney, wife of Wayne Rooney, the striker who has scored the most goals for the England team. She was pissed that stories about her private life kept coming in The Sun for example that she was tipsy on a bicycle in New York. The leak had to be someone who was a member of a closed Instagram group, she suspected.
Gossip Aunt Vardy
Rooney also had a suspect: Rebekah Vardy, who is known for being a gossiper. At first she blocked her, but after an angry reaction she lifted the ban. She then decided to post fake stories about herself on Instagram, for example about an intended participation in Strictly Come Dancing. However, they were stories that could only be read by Vardy.
Rooney’s ruse worked. The “news” appeared in the strip newspaper and on October 9, 2019, she tweeted that the mystery had been solved: Vardy was the leak!
The reaction was not long in coming: 40-year-old Vardy felt tarnished in her honor and started a libel suit. England is known for thedragonfly laws‘, dating back to Victorian times when the wealthy wanted to arm themselves against vile, slanderous allegations. Anyone who is known, has a reputation to uphold and has enough money, can go to court. The burden of proof lies with the accused.
catwalk
As a result, the infamous room thirteen of The Royal Courts of Justice has often been the scene of high-profile libel cases. For example, there was the trial between top cricketers Imran Khan and Ian Botham in the 1990s. At the same time, the so-called McLibel trial took place between McDonalds and two activists from Greenpeace London. More recently, the legal battle that actor Johnny Depp lost to The Sun†
The legal prelude in the Vardy v Rooney case lasted two years. A settlement was in the air, but to the delight of many islanders it nevertheless came to a true process. The entrance to the court near Fleet Street, the old newspaper street, turned into a catwalk. Fashion reviews appeared in the newspapers, both regarding the soccer women and their men.
Not only the tabloids filled pages, but also newspapers like The Guardian† The Times and The Daily Telegraph† Even the BBC couldn’t stay behind. The Daily Mail kept a live blog. Pieces were written about what Agatha Christie would have thought of the case, and reviews asked whether this case was a symptom of the narcissistic me-me-me culture.
cross-examination
Top lawyers also play an important role. Vardy is assisted by Hugh Tomlinson, the 68-year-old ‘Queens Counsel’, who in the past advocated for the Beckhams and Prince Charles, among others. His wiggly rival is David Sherborne, whose clientele includes Tony Blair, Lady Diana and Kate Moss.
Rooney’s attorney Sherborne wanted the crucial text messages between Vardy and her agent, Caroline Watt. But the day after the judge ordered that this information be released, something unfortunate happened: Watt’s mobile phone fell into the water of the North Sea during a boat trip. Vardy’s apps turned out to have been deleted and can no longer be retrieved by IT experts.
Watt also turned out to be too ill to testify and so Sherborne had little choice but to cross-examine Vardy. And with success: she admitted crying that her agent had passed on information about Rooney to The Sunwithout her permission. Rooney’s lawyer then tried to convince the judge, Lady Justice Steyn, that Vardy loves gossip and publicity. A character sketch is important in libel cases.
Part two?
Wayne Rooney confirmed that image on “men’s day,” when questioned under oath. For example, he said that during the European Championship in 2016, England coach Roy Hodgson had asked him, as captain, to talk to fellow attacker Vardy about the publicity that Rebekah would have constantly sought. Outside the courtroom, not under oath, Jamie Vardy stated that Rooney was talking from his neck.
On the last day of the trial, Vardy was on his own. Her husband Jamie was preparing with Leicester City for the game against Chelsea and the Rooneys were on a plane with their four children to Dubai for a sunny holiday. Again Vardy burst into tears, this time after being charged with perjury by Rooney’s lawyer. That accusation, if proven, can lead to a criminal trial, or Wagatha Christie part two.
After recovering from this soap, the judge will rule in a few weeks.