The royal editor of the News of the World appeared in court on charges of mobile phone hacking. Clive Goodman is accused of one count of conspiring to intercept voicemail messages and eight counts of intercepting voicemail messages.
District Judge Timothy Workman told him that his case was being transferred to the Old Bailey when he appeared before City of Westminster magistrates.
Mr Goodman, 48, from Putney, southwest London, was released on bail until his next hearing at the Old Bailey on November 29.
He was arrested after claims by members of the Prince of Wales’s household of security breaches in its telephone network.
Glenn Mulcaire, 35, from Sutton, southwest London, who faces the same charges as Mr Goodman, also appeared before the court and was ordered to appear with Mr Goodman on November 29.