Who were the ,"unidentified group of people hostile to Max Mosley". News of the World and their world of blackmail.

Tony Hatfield casts his expert forensic gaze on the judgement of Justice Eady in the case of Mosley v News of the World which the BBC have kindly provided on line here.

Tony ask the question ..."Did the News of the World really try blackmail to get evidence against Mosley?"

If , as he suggests , you search on the word "blackmail" in the judgement, you will find two sections , paras 82 - 87 when Editor Colin Myler (who BBC4 gave a handsome "Profile" repeated 3 times last week) and chief reporter Neville Thurlbeck were cross examined, that Justice Eady isolates to demonstrate that that is indeed what they did.

In this case the soon to be ex Editor and reporter were blackmailing the highly paid ladies who indulged Max Mosley in his strange fantasies... and who went on to print spurious , misleading and dishonest statements , the ladies were alleged to have made.

Perhaps more intriguing ,is the reason for the activities of the News of the World in the light of what was said (at para 225) ..

In this particular case, the evidence is that the Claimant had received a warning from Lord Stevens that he was being watched by some unidentified group of people hostile to him. This was at the end of February. He had also received a similar tip from Mr Bernie Ecclestone in January. He had taken the matter sufficiently seriously to arrange instruction for himself in spotting or avoiding surveillance.

It is worth noting the ante-penultimate paragraph of the judgement No 234..

It is perhaps worth adding that there is nothing “landmark” about this decision. It is simply the application to rather unusual facts of recently developed but established principles. Nor can it seriously be suggested that the case is likely to inhibit serious investigative journalism into crime or wrongdoing, where the public interest is more genuinely engaged.

The judge must have chuckled as he assembled his statement ... it is not without some droll observations ..

30. It is fair to point out that any parts of the photographs revealing anybody’s private parts are discreetly blocked out – including in one instance by a chequered flag.

65. It was put to the Editor and Mr Thurlbeck that the reason why Woman E was only paid £12,000 after she delivered the video material, despite having been offered £25,000 previously, was that they had been disappointed by the lack of Nazi content – a pertinent question. This was denied and the editor gave the reason that they like to renegotiate downwards, when in a strong bargaining position. They were affected by the credit crunch like everyone else.

One is left wondering what sort of depraved people do like to strut about in Nazi uniforms ....
When they do, there is always, it seems, one of Rupert Murdoch's newspapers ready to print the pictures.