The prince was right to fight – and also right about the need to stop good journalism being sullied by the bad. Trust has been severely damaged

The apology is “full and unequivocal”. The damages to be paid are huge. Appearing before the Leveson inquiry in 2011, Rupert Murdoch pronounced that to be “the most humble day of my life”. News Group’s settlement today of Prince Harry’s monumental case citing phone hacking, surveillance and misuse of private information by journalists and private investigators may make this another such day. It appears to vindicate Harry, not just in complaints about his treatment by the Murdoch press, but also the intrusions into the life of his late mother, Diana, Princess of Wales. One can only speculate about the sting of that within the Murdoch empire.

But if the best courtroom drama ends with a sense of justice being done and a triumphant winner, the long-awaited denouement is unlikely to win awards and the satisfaction for the victor, having settled the case must be – to some degree – limited. In this tale of celebrity, scandal and corruption there has been no obvious winner.

Jane Martinson is a Guardian columnist