Piers Morgan, an anchor for the British news show Good Morning Britain, has decided to quit his position, ITV News said on Tuesday.
The announcement came as Morgan faces intense backlash for his criticism of Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, following her interview with Oprah Winfrey that aired on CBS on Sunday, which was seen as a harsh rebuke of the royal family. His comments on the program on Monday were followed by a wave of complaints and the start of an investigation by the United Kingdom’s broadcasting regulator.
“Following discussions with ITV, Piers Morgan has decided now is the time to leave Good Morning Britain,” the company said in a Tuesday statement. “ITV has accepted this decision and has nothing further to add.”
Earlier on Tuesday, Morgan stormed off the set of the show over his annoyance with the comments of another commentator.
MEGHAN MARKLE SAYS SHE CONTEMPLATED SUICIDE AS A WORKING ROYAL
“I understand that you’ve got a personal relationship with Meghan Markle, or had one, and she cut you off. She’s entitled to cut you off if she wants to,” Alex Beresford said. “Has she said anything about you since she cut you off? I don’t think she has, but yet you continue to trash her.”
“OK, I’m done with this,” Morgan responded as he walked off. Beresford called his behavior “diabolical.”
Morgan later returned to the set. He had been with the show for six years.
All this happened amid uproar over Morgan’s comments about Meghan and her husband Prince Harry’s interview with Winfrey in which Meghan talked about how she had suicidal thoughts during her time as a working member of the royal family and the couple discussed “concerns and conversations” within the royal family about their son Archie’s skin color.
“I’m sorry, I don’t believe a word she said,” Morgan quipped on the show Monday. “I wouldn’t believe it if she read me a weather report.”
This followed several posts on Twitter.
“This interview is an absolutely disgraceful betrayal of the Queen and the Royal Family,” Morgan tweeted on Sunday. “I expect all this vile destructive self-serving nonsense from Meghan Markle — but for Harry to let her take down his family and the Monarchy like this is shameful.”
This interview is an absolutely disgraceful betrayal of the Queen and the Royal Family. I expect all this vile destructive self-serving nonsense from Meghan Markle – but for Harry to let her take down his family and the Monarchy like this is shameful. #OprahMeghanHarry pic.twitter.com/F2QDxELSsr
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) March 8, 2021
A little over an hour before the news about Morgan’s departure, United Kingdom media regulator Ofcom reported the receipt of more than 41,000 complaints about Monday’s episode of the show and announced the start of “an investigation into Monday’s episode of Good Morning Britain under our harm and offence rules.”
We have launched an investigation into Monday’s episode of Good Morning Britain under our harm and offence rules.
As of 14:00 on Tuesday 9 March, we have received 41,015 complaints about the programme.
— Ofcom (@Ofcom) March 9, 2021
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On Tuesday’s show, Morgan said mental illness and suicide are “extremely serious things.” He added, “It’s not for me to question whether she felt suicidal,” and he remarked that if she was denied professional assistance for her issues, as she claimed in the interview, that it would be a “scandal.”
The Washington Examiner has made multiple attempts to reach Morgan for comment on the matter.
In a tweet published minutes before the statement was released, Morgan posted a video of a clock with the works “tick tock.”
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) March 9, 2021
Buckingham Palace released a statement on Tuesday saying it was taking race-related issues “very seriously” following Harry and Meghan’s claim of concerns over their baby’s skin color.
The palace released a statement on behalf of the queen on Tuesday, saying: “The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan.”
“The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning. While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately,” the statement read. “Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much loved family members.”
After stepping down from royal responsibilities in January 2020, Harry and Meghan announced on Feb. 19 that they would not return as working royals, instead continuing to reside in Santa Barbara, California.
Former staffers to Meghan have accused her of bullying, and Buckingham Palace announced an investigation into the matter.
