On Tuesday, controversial talk show host Piers Morgan left his high-profile slot on the show Good Morning Britain. He had come under fire for his relentless criticism of Meghan Markle.
After Prince Harry and Meghan Markle had accused the British royal family of racism and ill-treatment in their recent explosive interview with celebrity talk show host Oprah Winfrey, Piers Morgan had sharpened his broadsides against both of them.
The broadcaster ITV confirmed his departure in a brief statement which said that following discussions with ITV, it has now been decided by Piers Morgan that it was time to leave Good morning Britain. There was nothing further to add and the discussion was accepted by ITV.
Subject to scrutiny both inside and outside the palace, Markle who holds the title of Duchess of Sussex had said in the interview with Oprah that her mental health had begun to deteriorate coinciding with her first pregnancy. She also said that all her requests were turned down regarding help from palace officials when she had suicidal thoughts.
On Monday, Piers Morgan had rubbished the claims of Meghan Markle on his Good Morning Britain show where he said that he did not believe even a single word that the Duchess told to Oprah.
He said that the fact that she had fired up that onslaught against their Royal Family was contemptible according to him. In a tweet later on the same day, Markle was referred to as the Pinocchio Princess by Morgan.
Morgan had an on-air clash with weather presenter Alex Beresford a day later. It appeared that Morgan had lost his temper after Beresford accused him of continuing to trash Markle. Morgan stormed off the set but returned withing 10 minutes.
Morgan acknowledged the backlash to his comments on Tuesday’s show. But he defended his position and said that he still had serious concerns about the veracity of a lot things that Markle said.
On the show, Morgan said that his real concern was a disbelief for she went to a senior member of the Royal household and she told them about her suicidal condition but she could not be provided with any help because it would be a bad look for the family.
A swift public backlash was invited by the comments and by Tuesday afternoon, the UK’s media regulator said that it had received 41,000 complaints against Piers Morgan.
The only occasion, according to the BBC, in the 17-year-long history of the media regulator, was when it had received a greater number of complaints during the racism row which involved Jade Goody and Indian actor Shilpa Shetty on the show ‘Celebrity Big Brother’.
Morgan’s comments were slammed by critics including mental health advocates. The chief executive of ITV, Carolyn McCall came out in support of Meghan Markle and said that she believed her completely while emphasizing that mental health was taken seriously by her channel.
It has been said by ITV that the departure of Morgan will take effect immediately although the channel has not yet confirmed as to who will replace him.
Morgan was known as a tough interviewer and he had worked with ITV for six years. Though, despite the criticism, Morgan appeared defiant on Wednesday. In a tweet, he said that on Monday, he said that he didn’t believe Meghan Markle in her Oprah interview. He has had time to reflect on this opinion of his and he still does not believe in Meghan Markle. If anyone believes then it’s okay for him, but he dosen’t.