Journal notes shown in the defamation trial between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard show that Mr Depp admitted to “disgraceful and odious behavior”.

       The actors have been facing off in court in Fairfax, Virginia, over Mr Depp’s claim that Ms Heard defamed him in a December 2018 op-ed published in The Washington Post titled “I spoke up against sexual violence — and faced our culture’s wrath. That has to change”.

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       As Mr Depp took the witness stand this week, the jury was shown messages that he and Ms Heard wrote to each other in a journal. In a message dated Sunday 27 September 2015, Mr Depp wrote, “I can’t express how sorry I am for having stooped so low ... to have spewed such vicious untruths for the sole purpose of hurting you – I am far from being proud of myself for such a grievous error!!! Shameful...”

       “I will never allow myself to resort to such disgraceful and odious behavior... No matter what!!!” he added.

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       “We’ve got a long and beautiful road stretched out ahead of us, my slim... there’s no reason in the world for us to not hit the f***er full throttle – there are no bumps or [divots] visible, and when we see them coming, we’ll just slow down,” he wrote.

       In her 2018 op-ed, Ms Heard wrote that “like many women, I had been harassed and sexually assaulted by the time I was of college age. But I kept quiet — I did not expect filing complaints to bring justice. And I didn’t see myself as a victim”.

       “Then two years ago, I became a public figure representing domestic abuse, and I felt the full force of our culture’s wrath for women who speak out,” she added at the time.

       While Mr Depp isn’t named in the piece, his legal team argues that it contains a “clear implication that Mr Depp is a domestic abuser”, which they say is “categorically and demonstrably false”. Mr Depp is seeking damages of “not less than $50m”.

       Ms Heard has filed a $100m counterclaim against Mr Depp for nuisance and immunity from his allegations.