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Prince Harry skipped the opening day of a huge trial he's at the center of -- surrounding alleged privacy breaches via UK tabloids -- and, according to the judge, it's not a good look.

The Duke of Sussex was nowhere to be found Monday as day 1 of a trial in London kicked off, where he's the key plaintiff. Remember, this is the case pertaining to the Daily Mirror -- just one of several publications Harry is suing after years of what he claims were illegal tactics used to spy on him as a youth for consistent story fodder.

While Harry was officially expected to take the stand Tuesday, the magistrate in this case -- Judge Timothy Fancourt -- had actually instructed PH to be there from the jump ... just in case they got through opening statements quickly and could get to his testimony sooner than later. Fancourt reportedly said he was quite surprised by the Prince's absence.

As for why Harry bailed, his attorney told the court his travel arrangements were hindered by security requirements ... not to mention his daughter's bday party. Lilibet turned 2 over the weekend, and Harry is said to have hopped on a plane to London right after that.

Despite apparently being in town, Harry's lawyer says he wasn't able to appear in court -- something that the attorneys for the Daily Mirror scoffed at ... as they were prepared to grill him about the articles he claims they ran that allegedly stemmed from dirty journalism.

Shakira and Lewis Hamilton may be a thing after all -- 'cause she keeps going to his races, and hanging out after ... which is exactly what happened again this weekend.

The Colombian singer actually returned to her old stomping grounds for Sunday's F1 Spanish Grand Prix to see Lewis up close and in person -- and her guy didn't disappoint.

Lewis, driving for Mercedes, matched his best finish of the year as he came in 2nd.

After the race, he credited his team, saying he felt he'd driven the best car of the season -- but ya gotta wonder if he had a little extra incentive with Shakira there.

Anyway, he was all smiles at the podium ... which turned into a post-race hang with a bunch of his friends, including Shakira, who joined him and his crew for dinner and drinks.

She was even sitting right next to LH -- and if you look close ... you can see his arm wrapped around her.

Lewis has his other arm hanging over his buddy to his right ... so this could just be platonic. However, considering he and Shakira recently did this same thing after the F1 race in Miami,  this latest sighting is sure to raise some eyebrows among shippers.

The contact doesn't seem like anything on the verge of PDA, per se ... but it's right on the border between friendly and maybe more than friends. Eye of the beholder, we suppose.

In any case, Shakira certainly likes being in Lewis' company. Not only did they reportedly get cozy at the Miami Grand Prix last month -- but they ended up on the water together too ... which effectively thwarted any chances of Tom Cruise getting with Shakira.

You'll recall ... there were rumors TC was actually interested in courting her -- but it looks like she's got her sights set on Lewis, whom she continues to be seen with in public.

Shakira is probably the most eligible bachelorette on the planet right now -- thanks to her split from Gerard Piqué -- and so far, there's one dude in first place for her attention.

Pride month is in full effect and some of the biggest names in Hollywood made sure to show up and show out for the annual West Hollywood festival over the weekend.

The renowned WeHo Pride festival, deemed one of the biggest celebrations of the LGBTQ+ community, definitely lived up to its name ... as tens of thousands of folks hit up the fest, including actress Melissa McCarthy -- AKA WeHo Pride's 2023 Ally Icon -- Idina Menzel and Niecy Nash-Betts.

It officially kicked off Friday with an OUTLOUD concert at West Hollywood Park ... and the shows went throughout the weekend with Grace Jones headlining on Saturday night and Carly Rae Jepsen Sunday evening.

Of course, the party went all weekend with a ton of concerts and a huge parade. And, many celebs and advocates were highlighted for their efforts ... Niecy and her wife Jessica took home the Trailblazer Icon awards.

And it's just the start, as the celebrations continue all month.

Taylor Swift had a pretty wild choking attack during her latest concert, but no need for the Heimlich here -- turns out she accidentally swallowed a freakin' bug in front of tens of thousands of fans!!!

The singer was at Chicago's Soldier Field Sunday night when the rogue insect jumped down Taylor's throat and pushed pause on the show. The Swifties went completely silent as they all watched their favorite performer start to cough repeatedly.

It wasn't as serious as fans thought, though ... she let them know about the bug sabotage, causing everyone to burst out laughing -- and after, apparently, swallowing the thing, T-Swift jokingly added, "Oh, delicious!"

Bugging out aside ... the Sunday night show wrapped up a pretty epic 3-day stand in the Windy City for TS.

As we reported, she made sure her LGBTQ fans felt safe and welcome during Friday night's show, saying she loves seeing fans interacting and being their true selves as Pride month kicked off.

Danny Bonaduce's recent health scare and upcoming brain surgery has forced him to list his stunning home ... telling us the property is just too dangerous for him to navigate in the wake of his struggles.

Bonaduce's 2,178 square-foot Seattle home -- with views of the entire city -- just hit the market for $1.6 million. It's a 3-bedroom and 3-bathroom with a chef's kitchen, massive walk-in closet, and a place Danny thought he'd live in forever until a mystery illness changed his life.

TMZ broke the story, Danny will undergo brain surgery Monday for a condition called hydrocephalus ... a neurological disorder caused by a buildup of liquid in the brain.

Danny tells us the disorder makes it hard for him to move at all, and the home just has too many stairs and rooms for him to get around safely. He and his wife, Amy, recently moved into their condo downtown where living is easier.

As for the house he just listed, Danny bought it back in 2015 for $1 million, and it's got premium appliances and outdoor decks with views of the Space Needle ... scenery Danny says he's gonna miss, but knows it's for a better way of living.

Michael J. Fox says his battle with Parkinson's disease is getting worse ... and that seemed evident during a 'Back to the Future' event this weekend where he took a fall, but still played it off pretty well.

The beloved actor was on hand Sunday for a 'BTTF' fan expo in Philly ... where fellow costars Christopher Lloyd and Tom Wilson (Biff) also joined him. Michael had just been intro'd and was walking out in front of the crowd and bowing down to Tom, before making his way to a sofa on the stage.

That's when MJF stumbled forward ... luckily, falling headfirst into the sofa cushions.

Of course, it was a jarring sight, and audience members were shocked and clearly concerned. But, a second later, Mike popped up with a ton of energy -- and didn't seem phased by it at all. When it was clear he was okay, the tension loosened up.

Michael recently revealed he falls kinda regularly now ... he spoke at length about it recently with CBS, and they actually aired footage of him nosediving on the streets of NYC. He says Parkinson's is hindering him more and more each day.

It was pretty sad ... MJF said he didn't think he'd live past 80 due to his Parkinson's, but despite this reality, he keeps putting on a brave face and keeping a good attitude.

Former XFL player Darez Diggs -- the brother of NFL stars Stefon and Trevon Diggs -- helped orchestrate the brutal attack of a man in an elevator earlier this week ... new video, obtained by TMZ Sports, shows.

The incident happened on May 29 in an apartment building in downtown Los Angeles ... and in the footage, you can see the altercation starts in an elevator lobby.

The clip shows after one of the elevators stops ... a man gets out, exchanges words with Darez -- and then retreats back inside the lift quickly.

The man then can be seen frantically trying to close the elevator's doors ... but before they close, Darez -- who also goes by Mar'sean Diggs -- stops them with his hand.

Darez then gets into the elevator and trades more words with the man ... before two of Darez's apparent acquaintances run in with fists flying.

The footage shows the men pummel the guy to the ground, ripping off his jewelry in the process. At one point, you can see one of the men kicks the guy in the face -- before they drag him into the lobby.

The men all stand around talking further ... before they seem to rip another chain off the guy's neck.

Darez then seems to leave everyone in the lobby in a different elevator.

The LAPD tells TMZ Sports ... they were called to the scene, but the suspects had already fled when officers arrived.

Cops tell us a report for a robbery was taken -- saying the complainant told them three men had stolen an orange purse containing diamonds and other jewelry during the incident.

So far, no arrests have been made ... but police say an investigation remains ongoing.

Darez played college football at Morgan State before transferring to the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He went on to play safety for one season for the XFL's Los Angeles Wildcats in 2020. He now works in the fashion industry -- running his own lifestyle brand called Blue Boii.

Florida's alleged crooks are getting creative -- this guy tried to conceal his identity with an oversized cardboard box while burglarizing a store, but he made one crucial slip-up and wound up in handcuffs.

It all started early Saturday around 4 AM ... surveillance video captured the moment the box-wearing bandit used a hard object to smash a glass display case after allegedly breaking into a Miami Gardens phone repair shop.

The footage, obtained by NBC 6 South Florida, shows the man scooping up piles of iPhones and shoving them into a bag slung over his shoulder. Might have been the perfect crime, except ol' box top decided to lift his cover for just a moment so he could see what he was grabbing -- and the big reveal of his face was captured on camera.

Jeremias Berganza, the store's owner, told NBC the culprit fled with 19 iPhones and $8,000 in cash -- but he didn't get very far.

Berganza reviewed the security footage showing the man's face and began searching for him in the shopping center while notifying police and asking other business owners to be on the lookout.

The suspect was eventually found boozing with his buddies at a liquor store nearby. Cops from Miami Gardens PD arrested the man but have yet to release his name.

A Disney day with the kids wasn't all sunshine and smiles for Tom Brady -- 'cause the NFL legend got talked into riding the "Tower of Terror" ... and it scared the hell out of him!!

Check out footage Brady posted of him and his daughter, Vivian, on the Disney World classic from their outing at the Florida theme park Sunday ... he was losing it as the ride jolted up and down!!

"The happiest place on earth," Brady captioned the video ... "(until you realize your kids were lying about tower of terror being 'mad chill') 😂"

The afternoon looked amazing for Brady otherwise ... he and his kids hopped all over the park, posing for a pic in front of Cinderella's Castle.

They even stopped to build a lightsaber in the Star Wars portion of Walt's place ... and, at one point, the G.O.A.T. paused to, fittingly, admire some resting goats.

Pete Davidson getting his new dog from a pet store and not from an animal shelter comes as a disappointment to the folks over at PETA.

Daphna Nachminovitch, the Senior VP of Cruelty Investigations over at PETA, tells TMZ ... "It's tragic that Pete didn’t seek out a borough-born mutt from a city animal shelter, because a scrappy New Yorker with charm, personality, and unconventional handsomeness could have been his perfect match."

As we reported ... Pete and his actress girlfriend Chase Sui Wonders picked up a cavapoo puppy last month from Citipups in Manhattan, and the dog is from a breeder.

PETA is urging Pete to consider adopting the next time he needs a four-legged friend, with Daphna telling us ... "Since shelters in New York and across the country are overflowing with homeless animals, PETA urges Pete to show some big heart energy by adopting, not shopping, in the future."

Remember ... Pete picked out the pup after seeing a photo of him on Citipups' website.

Of course, the whole reason Pete was looking for a puppy in the first place was because his dog Henry recently died at just 2 years old.

We covered it all in the latest episode of The TMZ Podcast, available on all podcast platforms.

Shayna Baszler is a 3x WWE Tag Team Champion, but last week's title was the most special in her decorated wrestling career ... 'cause she did it alongside her longtime friend, Ronda Rousey!

"It's not like we set out a plan," Baszler said, "We just both wanted it and did our thing to get us here, and so here we are. It's cool."

Shayna and Ronda -- whose friendship dates back to their days in the UFC -- won the Tag Team Titles in a Fatal 4-Way tag team match on "RAW," defeating Raquel Rodriguez and Shotzi, Bayley and IYO SKY, and Sonya Deville and Chelsea Green.

"That moment at the end of the match where I crawl back in the ring, and we're hugging was a real emotional moment," SB said. "When we think back to trying to pay for enough food to eat throughout the week and still make weight and living on the beach in Venice."

Baszler got emotional as she reflected on winning the titles with Rousey, explaining the journey to becoming champs wasn't easy and instead full of obstacles.

"I don't think people really understand how much we had to fight for this," Baszler said. "Maybe that's something for a book in the future. It's not like it's been easy. It's not like this is just handed to us. We had to fight and claw and demand for this opportunity."

"The Queen of Spades" believes reaching the pinnacle of the women's division with Ronda after all the work they've put in to reach this point is a career-defining moment.

Yung Gravy is on the mend from a nasty nosedive that left him with multiple fractures, but the charismatic rapper isn't up in arms over the music festival accident ... even if that arm's currently in a sling!!!

TMZ Hip Hop linked with Gravy at LAX, where he said he's got no beef with the Hangout Music Festival, the Alabama event, where he recently took the tumble while working the crowd.

Gravy says HMF is graciously covering his medical bills, and took the blame for him tripping over a wooden plank.

The fall was that much harder because the "Betty (Get Money)" rapper happens to be 6'6" -- and his height made it mandatory we get his thoughts on DDG proclaiming tall dudes are outta style in 2023.

Now, DDG's dating the 'Little Mermaid' herself, Halle Bailey, so he's brimming with confidence right now -- but surprisingly, Gravy agrees with him!

He told us he's happy to see the little guys get some shine after being overlooked ... although he does consider himself an exception in this circumstance.

On cue, Gravy did provide an exceptional musical update -- he tells us he's fresh off a trip from Cambodia and recorded music with one of the YSL rappers. 👀

Before this cute kid in his navy tee turned into a grooming expert and a TV personality (with some impressive facial hair), he was just playing with his little fur-ball pet and tumbling and flippin' around Quincy, Illinois.

Today, when he's not residing in Austin, Texas or New York City ... you can watch some of his finest work on the Netflix series, "Queer Eye," where he shows his comedic and unfiltered side. All jokes aside, he's an inspiration to many!

Need one more hint? He was in an Uber Eats commercial with Olympian Simone Biles.

A sonic boom heard throughout Washington D.C. was cause by fighter jets that sped off to intercept a wayward, unresponsive airplane ... which ultimately crashed in Virginia.

The loud, thunderous noise was widely reported Sunday throughout the D.C. region -- including neighboring states -- and it was later determined that the whole thing was planned by our armed forces, which was revealed later in the day ... despite spooking everyone.

At first, it seemed like it was just a drill they were conducting ... but now, the word is these F-16s were actually scrambled in an effort to intercept a small aircraft that was flying where it wasn't authorized to ... and which was apparently not responding to ATC signals.

Reports say the plane, a Cessna, lost altitude quickly -- and because no one knew where it came from or why it was cruising so close to the WH ... the military sprung into action.

ABC is reporting that the F16s actually caught up to the plane while it was still in the air -- but while it was also going down -- and that they actually saw the pilot of Cessna passed out inside. The plane ultimately crashed, and 4 people are said to have been onboard.

Their identities and conditions are unknown at this point, as is the cause of the plane going down in the first place. The FAA says the Cessna was going from Tennessee to Long Island -- but once it was in NY, it inexplicably turned around and flew in a straight line for D.C.

Kanye West and his family wanted to touch base with the man upstairs this weekend -- but it appears they were interrupted by the paparazzi ... which set Papa Bear off.

The rapper-producer was heading to church Sunday in L.A. with his "wife," Bianca Censori, and at least one of his kids -- 4-year-old Psalm. They were being hounded by photographers the whole time ... and at one point, Ye had to stop his car and deal with them himself.

It's unclear if this happened while he was going to church or leaving -- but, in any case, it got ugly on the side of the road ... where KW berated some of the paps tailing him.

In video, obtained by TMZ, you can see and hear Ye losing it -- yelling at the paps and demanding that they stop following him. He even used an expletive to get his point across.

Unfortunately, it doesn't seem they left him alone ... because photos later popped up that show Ye and co. at what seemed to be their final destination. In the lot of whatever facility they were at for church, Ye could be seen playing with Psalm ... who brought his bike.

Bianca, meanwhile, was standing right next to them ... and she had an interesting outfit on, as did Kanye. It seems like whatever service they were going to might've been themed, because others who were heading inside also appeared to be thematically dressed.

It's great to see Kanye doing the dad thing as he and Kim continue to coparent/blend families -- but it's a bummer that they can't do it without a lens in their face 24/7. Catch-22.

Prince Harry's legal war with the British press over alleged phone hacking is coming to a head this week when a trial is set to start ... and where he might even take the stand early.

The Duke of Sussex is reportedly expected to appear in a London court this upcoming week, and the word is ... he might even testify as early as Tuesday. The case being heard stems from a lawsuit he and others have filed against the parent company of the Daily Mirror.

This is just of a handful of publications he's suing ... all of which revolved around allegations of phone hacking, invasion of privacy and, effectively, spying on him and other members of the Royal Family dating back several years -- something PH is trying to rectify now.

The Daily Mirror case is going to be hashed out in court first, and Harry's likely testimony could actually be historic -- as he'll be the first senior Royal (or ex, rather) to testify in court as a witness offering evidence like this in a long time.

The last time it happened was way back in 1891, when King Edward VII (before he was actually king) testified in a slander case.

What Harry's suing over, in this particular case, is 33 of 150 stories about himself that the Daily Mirror published between 1995 and 2011 -- a period of time from which he claims these stories were produced via illegal tactics in Britain ... like alleged phone hacking, etc.

The Mirror has actually conceded in court docs that Harry and co. have a point about some unethical tactics they've employed over time, but they haven't fessed up on these specific stories he's citing. As such, he's dragging them into court to have it heard before a judge.

You'll recall ... Harry showed up across the pond back in March for another case he's pursuing against yet another tabloid parent company -- namely, Associated Newspapers, which publishes and distributes the Daily Mail, among other publications.

In that case, Elton John is a plaintiff as well ... as are other celebrities taking up Harry's cause in solidarity.

Like we said, he's suing a bunch of them -- and seems determined to take them all down ... one by one. If he's testifying for the Daily Mirror case, presumably he'll testify in others.

All eyes on Harold. 👀