Rebekah Vardy v Coleen Rooney live: WAGs facing each other in court as Wagatha Christie trial begins | UK News

During one preliminary hearing, Coleen Rooney’s barrister David Sherborne said a “number of abusive messages” had been exchanged between Rebekah Vardy and her agent Caroline Watt about Rooney.

Mr Sherborne told the court that Rooney’s lawyers wanted further information from the WhatsApp messages between Vardy and Ms Watt, but said Ms Watt’s phone had “regrettably” fallen into the North Sea after a boat she was on hit a wave shortly after a previous hearing.

“[It was] most unfortunate, because it was only a short time after the court ordered that the phone should be specifically searched,” he said.

Vardy’s lawyers have said she has “nothing to hide”.

Ms Watt had been due to give evidence in the trial, but was recently found to be “not fit” to take part, also withdrawing her written evidence.

Vardy’s lawyer Hugh Tomlinson has told the court: “We simply don’t know what the true position is in relation to Ms Watt… She’s not communicating with anybody.”

Mr Sherborne has said in written arguments that Ms Watt is a key witness and claimed “only half the story” can be investigated without her.

“The defendant’s position is that Ms Watt’s concern about giving evidence is because of the realisation that her evidence is untrue and therefore she is scared of being tested upon it,” he said.

Mr Tomlinson said Mr Sherborne’s complaint was “wholly misconceived”.

Mr Sherborne also asked for some documents from News Group Newspapers (NGN) – the publisher of The Sun newspaper – to be disclosed.

He claimed disclosure linked to Vardy in the legal dispute had been hit by “a series of unfortunate events”, which meant the bid for information from the journalists was a “last resort”.

Adam Wolanski QC, representing NGN, has decribed the bid for disclosure from The Sun journalists as a “fishing expedition”.

The judge hearing the case, Mrs Justice Steyn, granted Rooney’s request for the documents – but only related to communications between Vardy and Ms Watt and The Sun journalist Andrew Halls.