Nitwit hits Twitter with writ - The Sun

A SOCCER star who won an injunction to hide his affair with Big Brother's Imogen Thomas is crazily suing Twitter.

The married Premier League idol, who must remain anonymous, had his name linked to the injunction by a user of the social networking site.

The ace is taking unprecedented High Court action against the US-based service and "persons unknown responsible for the publication of information on the Twitter accounts". His ground-breaking move is the first legal bid to extend the powers of Britain's creeping privacy laws to the internet.

Case papers were filed after widely-reported "tweets" by a mystery source named a number of celebs alleged to have obtained injunctions.

Lawyers for the footballer - said to have won a gagging order to stop Imogen talking about an affair - are now expected to demand that Twitter supply data exposing the source.

The action was revealed as law lords published a year-long review into the use of injunctions and super-injunctions that ruled they should be granted only if "strictly necessary".

Internet leaks of the alleged names have wrecked celebrities' bids to hide sleazy behaviour by paying high-powered lawyers to gag the media. Barristers were anticipating another payday from the ace last night as he launched his attack on Twitter.

The case was filed as Imogen, 28, spoke of her fury at being accused of demanding 100,000 to stop her going public about the fling.

Britain's top privacy judge Mr Justice Eady accepted the blackmail claims without proof as he explained why he had granted an injunction against Imogen and The Sun.

Legal experts last night doubted the star could tame the net. A source at the centre of further alleged web leaks said: "Good luck suing Twitter.

"His lawyer must be laughing at the prospect of cashing in on trying to overturn the US constitution."

More than 140million tweets are sent daily by users around the world.

IMOGEN Thomas seeks refuge from her injunction nightmare at a hair salon - although she can't help looking at The Sun for the latest on the gagging order.

The former Big Brother beauty, 28, read the paper as she had her hair done at Salon Four in central London.

Welsh Imogen also studied her BlackBerry during the pampering session - swathed in a cape and towels that covered up a sexy black vest top and charcoal trousers.