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| Sally Bercow not 'some kitchen table blogger' | Sally Bercow not 'some kitchen table blogger' |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Sally Bercow, who is being sued for libel over a tweet she posted, was not "some kitchen table blogger", the High Court has heard. | Sally Bercow, who is being sued for libel over a tweet she posted, was not "some kitchen table blogger", the High Court has heard. |
| Lord McAlpine is seeking damages over the tweet which he says linked him to false claims of child abuse. | Lord McAlpine is seeking damages over the tweet which he says linked him to false claims of child abuse. |
| The peer was falsely accused after a BBC Newsnight investigation. He was not named on the programme but was wrongly identified on the internet. | The peer was falsely accused after a BBC Newsnight investigation. He was not named on the programme but was wrongly identified on the internet. |
| Mrs Bercow, the Speaker's wife, denies that her tweet was defamatory. | Mrs Bercow, the Speaker's wife, denies that her tweet was defamatory. |
| She was one of several high-profile figures who mentioned Lord McAlpine's name on social networking site Twitter, wrongly linking him to claims of child abuse at the Bryn Estyn boys' home in North Wales. | She was one of several high-profile figures who mentioned Lord McAlpine's name on social networking site Twitter, wrongly linking him to claims of child abuse at the Bryn Estyn boys' home in North Wales. |
| 'Sealed cave' | |
| At Tuesday's hearing, Lord McAlpine's QC, Sir Edward Garnier, told Mr Justice Tugendhat that Mrs Bercow's Twitter following of almost 60,000 was bigger than the readership of some local newspapers. | At Tuesday's hearing, Lord McAlpine's QC, Sir Edward Garnier, told Mr Justice Tugendhat that Mrs Bercow's Twitter following of almost 60,000 was bigger than the readership of some local newspapers. |
| "We are not talking about some kitchen table blogger addressing perhaps herself and one other person," he said. | "We are not talking about some kitchen table blogger addressing perhaps herself and one other person," he said. |
| "We are talking about a pretty widespread readership." | "We are talking about a pretty widespread readership." |
| Sir Edward told court that, in the context of the Newsnight broadcast and the media coverage, only "a moron in a hurry" or an "anchorite in a sealed cave" could not have known the meaning of the tweet. | |
| Ms Bercow's counsel, William McCormick QC, said she had promptly tweeted an apology, written letters apologising for the distress caused and making clear that the underlying allegations were untrue. | Ms Bercow's counsel, William McCormick QC, said she had promptly tweeted an apology, written letters apologising for the distress caused and making clear that the underlying allegations were untrue. |
| He said she had made an offer to settle the case which had not been withdrawn. | He said she had made an offer to settle the case which had not been withdrawn. |
| Neither Lord McAlpine or Mrs Bercow appeared in court on Tuesday. | Neither Lord McAlpine or Mrs Bercow appeared in court on Tuesday. |
| Granting an application by Lord McAlpine, the judge ordered that there should be a preliminary hearing on what was the actual meaning of the words used in the tweet - both a natural and ordinary meaning and an innuendo meaning. |