The Manchester Arena attack affected a survivor's life "in every conceivable way", the UK High Court has heard, at the start of a harassment trial against a man who claims that the bombing was faked.
Bombing survivors Martin and Eve Hibbert are suing Richard Hall for harassment and data protection.
The father and daughter were at the Ariana Grande concert in May 2017 and suffered life-changing injuries.
Richard Hall's claim that no-one died in the attack, which killed 22 people, has been described by a judge as "preposterous".
Mr Hibbert sustained a spinal cord injury and Miss Hibbert suffered "catastrophic" brain damage, which had led first responders to conclude that she had already died, the court heard today.
Mr Hall has claimed that the attack, in which Salman Abedi detonated a home-made rucksack bomb in the crowd of concert-goers, had been faked by government agencies using "crisis actors".
'An elaborate hoax'
The defendant - who describes himself as a journalist - is being sued over several videos and a book in which he has made claims that the bombing was a "hoax".
The court heard that he had secretly filmed Eve Hibbert and her mother at their home.
Lawyers for Mr Hall claimed that his actions had been "pursued for the purpose of preventing or detecting crime".
They added that he had deleted the footage which had been recorded outside the Hibbert's house.
Today, Mr Hibbert and Mr Hall appeared at the High Court in London for the first day of the trial, with around 20 members of the public watching the proceedings across two courtrooms.
Mrs Justice Steyn is due to conclude proceedings on Thursday, with a decision expected in writing at a later date.
Jonathan Price, a barrister for the Hibberts, said that the father and daughter had been among those who were closest to Abedi when he had detonated the bomb.
The attack had changed Mr Hibbert's life "in every conceivable way". Yet, he said, Mr Hall has dismissed the tragedy as "an elaborate hoax".
"They have both suffered life-changing injuries from which they will never recover," he said.
The court heard that Mr Hibbert received 22 wounds from shrapnel, and Miss Hibbert suffered a "catastrophic brain injury" after a bolt from the bomb struck her in the head. She had been presumed dead at the scene.
Mr Price added: "Martin, paralysed, saw Eve lying next to him with a hole in her head and assumed he was watching her die, unable to help. He saw others lying dead or injured around him."
"Mr Hall does not accept any of this. His theory is that it is an elaborate hoax."
"He doggedly adheres to the assertion that this attack did not happen and that we are all being fooled," Mr Price noted.
'A huge fraud'
The barrister said that Mr Hall has claimed that Mr Hibbert is lying, and that Miss Hibbert had been disabled before the bombing.
"Mr Hall says her parents are invoking their daughter's catastrophic disability as part of a huge fraud on the general public."
Paul Oakley, a barrister for Mr Hall, said that his client is "entirely entitled" to have his views, which were formed after he "scoured the public domain".
"My client is perfectly entitled to hold his views and he is willing to amend them if he is made aware of evidence to the contrary."
In written submissions, Mr Oakley said that Mr Hall has the right to freedom of expression.
"However unpleasant Mr Hall's published views are considered to be, they are protected."
Mr Hibbert had made a "positive choice" to co-operate with the media concerning the attack, Mr Oakley said.
"As such, it is Mr Hibbert who has come to the 'harassment' and not the converse."
The court was later told that, while there was one incident of filming, this had bene from a public highway and that the footage was never published.
Mr Oakley continued: "It is submitted that this single incident would not be sufficient to found an action."
