Hugh Grant is set to face the publisher of the Sun newspaper in the High Court after a damages claim brought by actor was allowed to proceed to trial.

In a ruling on Friday, Mr Justice Fancourt concluded Mr Grant's claim could move to trial, except for any allegations relating to phone hacking.

The judge found that Mr Grant could have brought a claim for phone hacking sooner, as he had knowledge of it, but that his other allegations will have to be tried.

He said: "It was only on seeing invoices disclosed in NGN's generic disclosure in 2021 that Mr Grant believed that private investigators (PIs) had been instructed by The Sun to target him in various ways, particularly in 2011.

"Although Mr Grant was aware prior to March 2016 of general allegations about use of PIs to obtain information, there is in my judgment a realistic chance that Mr Grant may establish at trial that, although he was aware of general allegations and was suspicious, he could not reasonably have believed with sufficient confidence that he may have been targeted by PIs instructed by The Sun in some of the relevant ways.

"Sufficient knowledge or belief that NGN's denials of phone-hacking were false does not necessarily mean that Mr Grant believed at that time that NGN had used different methods of UIG targeted at him. That issue will have to be tried."

A spokesperson for News Group Newspapers (NGN) said: "NGN is pleased that, following our application, the High Court has ruled that Mr Grant is statute barred from bringing a phone hacking claim against The Sun.

"The remainder of his claim, which has been brought following a statement made by (private investigator) Mr Gavin Burrows in 2021, has been allowed to proceed to trial.

"NGN strongly denies the various historical allegations of unlawful information-gathering contained in what remains of Mr Grant's claim."