More than 41,000 complaints have been lodged to ITV over comments by Piers Morgan, which saw to the controversial presenter’s departure from the network.
Among them was a complaint lodged by Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, over comments made by Morgan about her on the network’s breakfast television show, Good Morning Britain (GMB).
Within the segment, which saw to Morgan’s dummy spit from the network, the controversial former News of the World editor said he did not believe a word the duchess had said during her interview with Oprah Winfrey.
During her interview alongside husband Harry, the Duke of Sussex, the pair revealed that Meghan had considered suicide during her time in Buckingham Palace.
Meghan told Winfrey that she “didn’t want to be alive anymore” and said she would have committed suicide if she had not told her husband.
ITV’s royal editor, Chris Ship, said the Duchess of Sussex had filed her complaint on Monday following the GMB segment.
Taking to Twitter, he said: “Meghan raised concerns about how [Piers Morgan’s] words affect the issue of mental health and what it might do to others contemplating suicide.”
Ship added that the complaint had likely been sent to ITV chief executive Carolyn McCall.
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 pic.twitter.com/rA09dOQ4GN— Chris Ship (@chrisshipitv) March 10, 2021
The news comes as The Guardian reports ITV has seen almost £200 million (around $360 million) wiped off its market value after Morgan’s decision to quit as co-host of GMB.
On Wednesday, the day after the news of the presenter’s departure broke, the broadcaster’s share price slumped by 3.8 per cent, the outlet reported.
After departing GMB, Morgan doubled down on his stance, saying that he was defending “freedom of speech”, but said it was “not for me to question if she felt suicidal”.
