Harry naked pictures bought for ‘bargain’ £10,000 as Sun defends publishing them

Pictures of Prince Harry naked in Las Vegas were snapped up for a “bargain” £10,000 before being published on the front of The Sun, it emerged today.

The images, taken by a partygoer branded “despicable” by one of Harry’s Vegas friends, were sold to the tabloid by the Splash News picture agency.

Experts said the amount was “surprisingly low” but their publication today sparked 60 people to complain to the Press Complaints Commission.

The media watchdog had circulated a request from Clarence House for UK papers to refrain from publishing the pictures because they were taken in his hotel room. It said it would consider whether to launch a formal investigation into whether The Sun had breached its code of practice.

Today The Sun stood by its decision to publish the pictures, which had been seen by millions on the internet after being published by the Hollywood gossip website TMZ. Evening Standard understands that the decision to publish was “taken entirely” by editor Dominic Mohan despite suspicion that News International boss Rupert Murdoch was keen to use the story to fight back against a feared neutering of the press in the wake of the Leveson inquiry.

Clarence House refused to be drawn on whether it would make a formal complaint to the PCC on behalf of Prince Harry.

Media lawyer Mark Stephens said The Sun would become the “pariahs of Fleet Street”.

Journalism professor Brian Cathcart, a founder of the Hacked Off campaign that opposes media intrusion, said: “This is not about whether we can have a peek at Harry’s bottom. It’s about whether big national newspaper groups have a right to intrude in people’s private lives.”

Today further details emerged of the party, with guests claiming Harry was the first to strip off.

The prince, 27, was said to have removed his swimming shorts in front of about 25 guests after being the first to miss a shot at “strip billiards”.

He was soon followed by the blonde who he was pictured bear-hugging as she held a pool cue — guests said he was trying to protect her modesty.

One partygoer told The Sun: “When we got to the room , Prince Harry was already there. There were about 25 people in total — at least 15 girls. “The girl missed her shot and took her dress off. Then she shot again and took her bra off.”

Arthur Landon, a friend of Harry who was not at the hotel party, today said the publication of the pictures had “put a real dampener” on their week that began with a visit to Necker in the British Virgin Islands.

Mr Landon, 30, said he suspected the pictures had been sold by one of the bikini-clad women invited to the prince’s £5,000 a night suite.

Harry, Mr Landon, Tom “Skippy” Inskip and Cressida Bonas spent a week on Necker — Sir Richard Branson’s private island — celebrating the 27th birthday of his son, Sam. Three days into the party Mr Landon posted a picture on Facebook of a man wearing Bermuda shorts similar to those worn in Vegas by Prince Harry, apparently passed out in the sand.

Rupert Murdoch’s daughter Elisabeth today defended The Sun’s decision to print the pictures, saying she felt “bad” for the Prince, who she said was a “young guy having fun” but claiming she herself had searched for the pictures on the internet and added: “I think there is a public interest argument in that.”

US Olympian Ryan Lochte, who raced Harry at a pool party in Las Vegas, said he was glad he didn’t take part in naked billiards, adding: “I don’t need that.”