The royal editor of the News of the World faces a possible jail term after pleading guilty today to a charge of plotting to intercept personal voicemail messages left for senior members of the Royal Family and their staff.

Clive Goodman, 48, entered his guilty plea at the Old Bailey this morning and immediately apologised to the Prince of Wales, his two sons William and Harry and members of their household staff for what his barrister admitted was "a gross invasion of privacy".

The News of the World also apologised for its reporters actions. Goodman has been suspended since his arrest in August.

Goodman's downfall came after Prince William became suspicious over two relative minor 'scoops' in the journalist's Blackadder column, including one item about him going to see a doctor about a knee injury - an appointment very few people knew about.

In the dock with Goodman was Glenn Mulcaire, 35, a former footballer with AFC Wimbledon, who admitted to the same charge and five further charges of unlawfully intercepting voicemail messages left for people including Max Clifford, the PR guru, and the supermodel Elle Macpherson, between February 16 and June 16 this year.

As he sat in the dock, Goodman's counsel, John Kelsey-Fry QC, said that he wanted to apologise to members of the Royal Family caught up in the hacking scam.

Mr Kelsey-Fry said: "He wishes through me to take the first opportunity to apologise publicly to those affected by his actions. He accepts they were a gross invasion of privacy and Mr Goodman accepts that this characterisation is correct.

"He therefore apologises unreservedly to the three members of the royal household staff concerned and their principals, Prince William, Prince Harry and the Prince of Wales."

Both men were remanded on unconditional bail for pre-sentence reports and the case was put off for a date to be fixed, probably in the next two months.

But Mr Justice Gross warned: "I am not ruling out any options. It’s a very serious matter."

Fourteen other "alternative" charges which both Goodman and Mulcaire had originally faced were ordered to be left on the file after their guilty pleas.

They alleged that both men had intercepted voicemail messages left for a number of other high-profile names. These were the Prince of Wales’s aide, Helen Asprey; Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton, the ex-SAS officer who is private secretary to Princes William and Harry; and Prince Charles’s communications secretary, Paddy Harveson.

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