December 19, 2013updated 20 Dec 2013 4:17pm

News of the World hacked ‘Babykins’ Kate Middleton’s phone messages, court told

The News of the World hacked Kate Middleton’s voicemail messages, the hacking trial heard today.

Transcripts of voicemails left by Prince William on Kate's mobile phone were read to the jury at the Old Bailey this morning.

Prosecutor Andrew Edis QC, read out "Hi baby, it's me" from one voicemail that William left to Kate. He also called her "Babykins".

In the voicemail, Prince William – now the Duke of Cambridge – starts the message to Kate with the words: "Hi baby. Um, sorry, I've just got back in off my night navigation exercise."

He tells her that he nearly got shot while on a training exercise.

In the call, he said: "I had a busy day today again. I've been running around the woods of Aldershot chasing shadows and getting horribly lost, and I walked into some other regiment's ambush, which was slightly embarrassing because I nearly got shot.

"Not by live rounds but by blank rounds, which would have been very embarrassing, though."

Former News International chief executive Rebekah Brooks, 45, of Churchill, Oxfordshire; ex News of the World editor Andy Coulson, also 45, from Charing in Kent; and the tabloid's ex-managing editor Stuart Kuttner, 73, from Woodford Green, Essex, are all on trial accused of conspiring with others to hack phones between 3 October 2000 and 9 August 2006.

Former NoW and Sun editor Brooks is also accused of two counts of conspiring with others to commit misconduct in public office – one between 1 January 2004 and 31 January 2012 and the other between 9 February 2006 and 16 October 2008 – linked to alleged inappropriate payments to public officials.

She faces another two allegations of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice – one with her former personal assistant Cheryl Carter, 49, from Chelmsford in Essex, between 6 July and 9 July 2011; and a second with her husband, Charles Brooks, and former head of security at News International, Mark Hanna, and others between 15 July and 19 July 2011.

Coulson is also facing two allegations that he conspired with former NoW royal editor Clive Goodman, 56, from Addlestone in Surrey, and other unknown people to commit misconduct in public office – between 31 August 2002 and 31 January 2003, and between 31 January and 3 June 2005.

Jurors were told that news editor Ian Edmondson, who is charged with conspiring to hack phones between 3 October 2000 and 9 August 2006, is ''currently unfit'' and will take no further part in the trial.

All of the accused deny all of the charges.

The trial continues.