Da Vinci furore: from Code to court

THE secrets of The Da Vinci Code came in for legal scrutiny yesterday at the High Court in London, where multi-millionaire author Dan Brown confronted two historians who claim their work was plundered for his blockbuster novel.

Mr Brown’s novel has sold 40 million copies translated into 44 languages, earning him over €293 million.

Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh are suing their own publishers, Random House, alleging Mr Brown’s novel was based on their 1982 book, The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail.

Their work examined theories that Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene had a child whose bloodline continues, with the Catholic Church hiding the truth.

Mr Brown’s book was the target of a previous US suit. In 2005, a US judge ruled Mr Brown’s book did not infringe on the copyrights of Daughter of God, by Lewis Perdue, or Perdue’s 1983 novel The Da Vinci Legacy.

The big-screen adaptation of The Da Vinci Code was due to be released in late May, but the £10m (€14m) copyright claim could affect its release date.

Mr Brown, an American known to hate publicity, looked bewildered by the array of press as he emerged from a chauffeur-driven car at the Law Courts.

Inside, Mr Brown watched legal teams tackle the challenge of “theft of intellectual property” theft.

Mr Baigent and Mr Leigh claim Mr Brown “lifts the central theme” from their 1982 book.

Their non-fiction bestseller has seen a revival in sales since the clash with Mr Brown’s thriller, which is published by the same US publishing empire.

Mr Brown acknowledges the theories of The Holy Blood in his novel.

“The question facing the court is if you can copyright an idea,” said one expert. “You could argue that, through the centuries, writers have recycled plots and ideas.” The proceedings were adjourned until Monday.