Piers Morgan's Duchess of Sussex comments break Ofcom record after 57,000 complaints

17 March 2021

Piers Morgan's comments on 'Good Morning Britain' about Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, have become Ofcom's most complained about TV moment of all time.

Piers Morgan

The former 'GMB' co-host quit the ITV programme last week, a day after airing his views on the Duchess of Sussex's tell-all Oprah Winfrey interview, and the communications regulator has received 57,121 complaints.

An Ofcom spokesperson said: "We can confirm that this issue has attracted the highest number of complaints since our reporting began."

The spokesperson also confirmed an investigation is ongoing.

Meghan herself was said to have "formally filed a complaint" to ITV about Piers following some of his comments about the interview.

ITV News royal editor Chris Ship wrote on Twitter: "So ... the Duchess of Sussex formally filed a complaint to @ITV on Monday.

"It’s thought to have been sent to the broadcaster’s CEO.

"Meghan raised concerns about how @piersmorgan’s words affect the issue of mental health and what it might do to others contemplating suicide (sic)"

During the 'GMB' episode reflecting on the bombshell Oprah interview, Piers said he "didn’t believe a word" of what Meghan had said.

In the interview, the duchess had told how she "didn’t want to be alive" after receiving heavy public scrutiny.

But following his comments on 'GMB', Piers resigned from the programme and has since claimed Meghan is "contemptible" for the "damage she's done to the British monarchy and to the Queen".

He told Sky News: "I believe in freedom of speech, I believe in the right to have an opinion.

"If people want to believe Meghan Markle, that's entirely their right.

"I don't believe almost anything that's come out of her mouth.

"And I think the damage she's done to the British monarchy and to the Queen at a time when Prince Philip is lying in hospital is enormous and frankly contemptible.

"If I have to fall on my sword for expressing an honestly-held opinion about Meghan Markle and that diatribe of bilge that she came out with in that interview, so be it."