Rebekah Vardy trial – live: Coleen Rooney 'Wagatha Christie' libel case starts

The High Court is still waiting for the trial to kick off.

But Chiara Giordano reports counsel are now in the courtroom and boxes have arrived.

And here is a reminder of the post that kicked it all off...

Three “false” stories Coleen Rooney claims to have planted on her private Instagram account as part of a months-long “sting operation” are at the heart of her libel battle with Rebekah Vardy.

Here is a run through of what they are:

Mrs Rooney claims to have posted the first of her “sting operation” posts about a so-called gender-selection treatment in spring 2019.

The post featured a photograph of the back seat of an airplane overlaid with the text “Let’s go and see what this gender selection is all about”, Mrs Rooney claims.

She alleges that the invented post was marked on Instagram as “seen” only by Mrs Vardy’s account, her lawyers have told the High Court.

In August that year, the Sun published an article claiming Mrs Rooney travelled to Mexico to look into the treatment.

The story, carrying journalist Andy Halls’s byline, is headlined “COL’S BABY GIRL BID Coleen Rooney travelled to Mexico to look into £8k ‘gender selection’ treatment in desperate bid to have baby girl”.

The article, referring to “a source” and “pals”, alleged Mrs Rooney is “so desperate for her fifth baby to be a girl” that she wants to hear more about a process “in which doctors examine embryos in a lab before implanting only those of the desired gender back into the womb”.

A private “false” post about planning a return to TV is made in autumn 2019, Mrs Rooney claims.

She says it featured a “selfie” and the text “Up and out!! Easing my way back into work!! TV decisions today.... maybe it’s time for Australia”.

Mrs Rooney’s lawyers claimed in her High Court defence that the post was only accessible by Mrs Vardy’s account.

Three days later, a Sun article under Michael Hamilton’s byline was published under the headline “ROO-MBA Coleen Rooney in talks to join Strictly next year as she looks to revive TV career when Wayne returns to UK”.

It quoted an anonymous source and claimed to exclusively reveal Mrs Rooney was “locked in talks with producers”, planned to “front a fashion programme” and “could well do” the Strictly Come Dancing TV show.

Mrs Rooney says she shared false information about her basement being flooded in autumn2 019, the third “sting operation” post.

Her lawyers have again alleged to the High Court that the post was only accessible to Mrs Vardy’s account.

On 8 October, The Sun published a story, with Simon Boyle’s byline, headlined: “IN ROO-INS Wayne and Coleen Rooney’s £20m ‘Morrisons mansion’ flooded during Storm Lorenzo”.

The article, quoting a “source close to the couple”, claimed to reveal that bad weather had “wreaked havoc” at a Cheshire property, with Mrs Rooney being “called in to find the cellar had been flooded”.

And here is a look at who is who in the trial - including the pair’s footballer husbands:

Here is a reminder of what the High Court has heard in the run-up to today:

Rebekah Vardy’s agent’s phone “fell into the sea” after a court ordered it should be searched, Coleen Rooney’s barrister said:

Messages between Rebekah Vardy and her agent Caroline Watt were revealed:

A key witness - Ms Vardy’s agent again - was deemed “not fit” to give evidence in the trial starting today:

Ms Rooney’s barrister claimed to the High Court last month Ms Vardy “appears to accept” that her PR was the source of the leaked stories:

The trial is expected to last for six days.

It comes nearly two years after Rebekah Vardy launched libel proceedings over the claims.

While there have been hearings over the case since then, this is the first time it will go to trial.

Here is a timeline of events to run through before the trial kicks off today:

After months of legal wrangling, the much anticipated “Wagatha Christie” High Court libel trial is set to begin.

Here is a recap of what the case is about and how it all started:

Good morning. Welcome to our live coverage of the trial between Coleen Rooney and Rebekah Vardy which kicks off today.