Trump" rel="tag">Donald Trump trial live updates: Stormy Daniels returns to the stand in the ... trends now

The atmosphere inside courtroom 1530 was already electric. A brooding Donald Trump glared out at the ranks of press as if to gauge the size of his audience before prosecutors and defense lawyers haggled over how much of the mechanics of his alleged affair could be brought up before the jury.

Only no-one had reckoned with the way porn star Stormy Daniels would become a runaway witness as she described their 2006 hotel encounter.

'I had my clothes and my shoes off. I believe my bra however was still on. We were in the missionary position,' Daniels said.

Read the full account of Daniels' testimony below.

Ted Cruz has issued an unusual defense of Donald Trump amid Stormy Daniels' salacious testimony.

The Republican Texas senator said people should not be shocked that Donald Trump has not been 'celibate'.

Cruz said:

By the way, the testimony of Stormy Daniels that was salacious - that was the point of it! Listen there is no person on planet Earth that believes Donald Trump has been celibate all his life. That is not news.

But they want to drag him through the gutter because this is a political smear job. It's not about the rule of law. It's tragic what's happening because the rule of law is important. It protects all of us. This is what banana republics do."

Donald Trump spoke to reporters before entering the courtroom on Thursday morning.

The ex-president blasted the case against him.

He was joined by lawyer Todd Blanche.

Also with Trump in court today is Florida Senator Rick Scott, adviser Boris Epshteyn and lawyer Alina Habba.

A court officer told photographers in the hallway that Judge Merchan is no longer allowing photography in the courtroom for the rest of the trial.

Photographers had been allowed to take photos of Donald Trump at the start of the day from the front of the courtroom but from nowhere else.

Someone reportedly violated the order by taking a photograph from the aisle while walking to the front of the court.

Photographers may be limited to taking photographs from the hallway only when Trump enters and exits.

Here is an example from May 7 of the photography that previously had been permitted:

Donald Trump departed Trump Tower to head to the Manhattan criminal court.

The ex-president waved before heading to his motorcade.

President Joe Biden is watching the news coverage of Donald Trump’s hush-money trial.

‘Only on the evening news,’ he told CNN’s Erin Burnett in an interview that aired on Wednesday night.