Wagatha Christie: Everything you need to know about this week’s libel trial

Wagatha Christie? The name rings a bell. Is this one of those films in which Kenneth Branagh wears a huge moustache and fixes a beady glare on loads of b-list actors?

No, that’s Agatha Christie. Wagatha Christie is a lot juicer – with many more plot twists, and potentially a lot of financial blood on the carpet.

Sounds great? Is it on Netflix? Sky Atlantic? Or will I have to watch it on a dodgy streaming site?

Actually, it’s all taking place in a London Court this coming week. Footballers’ wives Rebekah Vardy (40) and Coleen Rooney (36) are finally having their day before a judge. Or at least that is true of Vardy, wife of Leicester City striker Jamie. She is suing Rooney – married to former England international Wayne – for libel over Rooney’s allegation that stories about her and Wayne had been leaked from Vardy’s Instagram account to the press.

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Why would Rebekah Vardy leak stories about Colleen Rooney?

The claim made by Rooney is that someone with access to Vardy’s Instagram fed stories to the Sun. This blew up in 2019 when Rooney wrote on Instagram and Twitter that she had become suspicious that person in her social circle was leaking intimate stories from her private life.

Oh yes, I vaguely remember…

Rooney suspected the mole was Vardy and so restricted access to particular stories to just Vardy’s “Insta” account. If claims made in these posts then made their way to the press, she would know who the guilty party was. “It’s… Rebekah Vardy’s account,” she concluded with a flourish worthy of of a crime writer. Hence “Wagatha” Christie – “WAG” being a sneery acronym for the “wives and girlfriends” of famous sportsmen.

Why didn’t Vardy apologise and let us all move on with our lives?

Vardy has always pleaded her innocence and claims Rooney has ruined her good name. Hence the libel action.Vardy’s lawyers also claim her husband, Jamie, has faced abuse on the pitch and that they’ve had to keep their young kids away from games as a result.

It’s still rare for these cases to end up in court, right?

Last summer, Vardy’s legal team requested a “summary judgement” from the London High Court, which would mean much of the case would be resolved without trial. But the judge refused. The judge has also allowed Rooney to argue Vardy is the author of the “Secret Wag” column in the Sun, which Vardy denies. Rooney’s lawyers said it demonstrated Vardy’s “history and practice of publicly disclosing private information about other people she was friendly or associated with”.

Any last minute twists likely when the case gets underway?

We’ve already had a dinger of surprise. Last week, Rooney’s lawyers told the court that a series of electronic exchanges between Vardy and her agent, Caroline Watt, suggested that Watt, who had access to Vardy’s Instagram account, may have handed over information about Rooney to The Sun.

Does Watt’s phone corroborate these findings?

We’ll never know. The court was told Watt accidentally dropped her phone in the North Sea after Rooney’s lawyers asked to search it for messages.

My head’s spinning. It sounds like Vardy is 1-0 down with time running out.

Libel laws being what they are, Rooney faces a high burden of proof in order to mount a successful defence. She must demonstrate that not only was someone with access to Vardy’s account leaking stories on Vardy’s behalf, but that Vardy herself was complicit. It’s a bit like Manchester City winning the Champions League. Sure, in theory it could happen one day – but will it?