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'I'LL FALL ON MY SWORD'
Piers Morgan brands Meghan Markle ‘contemptible’ and doubles down on comments following Good Morning Britain exit
PIERS Morgan today branded Meghan Markle "contemptible" as he doubled down on the comments that saw him quit Good Morning Britain.
The 55-year-old laughed as he left his London home this morning - saying he was willing to "fall on his sword" after "agreeing to disagree" with ITV over apologising for the rant.
🔵 Follow our Piers Morgan live blog for the latest on his GMB exit...
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Piers shocked fans by dramatically leaving Good Morning Britain last night after senior execs told him to say sorry on air following his heated clash with the show’s weatherman Alex Beresford over
He stormed off set during the huge row on Tuesday morning after Alex criticised his reaction to Meghan's claims she contemplated suicide and was racially abused by the Royal Family.
But Piers said he was not willing to apologise, and walked - bringing an immediate end to his six-year stint on the morning show.
Speaking this morning outside his London home, the presenter described his departure from the programme as "amicable", adding: "I had a good chat with ITV and we agreed to disagree."
It comes as:
- Piers Morgan said he STILL doesn't believe Meghan Markle after quitting GMB
- Meghan Markle may have complained about Piers to ITV, it was reported
- Piers Morgan quit GMB after refusing to apologise on air
- Ranvir Singh made an awkward blunder on TV telling fans 'Piers will be here later'
- Susanna Reid paid emotional tribute to ‘outspoken & disruptive’ Piers
- What happened between Piers Morgan and Alex Beresford?
- Here's why Piers isn't on GMB this morning
Standing with with his daughter Elise, he added: "I'm just going to take it easy and see how we go.
"I believe in freedom of speech, I believe in the right to be allowed to have an opinion. If people want to believe Meghan Markle, that's entirely their right.
"I don't believe almost anything that comes 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."
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And he said he was "always in talks with people" as he described his move as a "temporary hibernation";.
Piers said: "I think it's fair to say, although the woke crowd will think that they've cancelled me, I think they will be rather disappointed when I re-emerge."
Asked what he would say to his Good Morning Britain colleague, Alex Beresford, with whom he had a heated debate during Tuesday's show, Morgan said: "Good luck to him."
And he seemed far from sorrowful over his newfound unemployment.
He this morning tweeted: "BREAKING NEWS: Good Morning Britain beat BBC Breakfast in the ratings yesterday for the first time. My work is done."
GMB achieved record ratings yesterday as millions tuned in to see the analysis of Harry and Meghan's 90-minute special.
The outspoken host had earlier taken to Twitter, saying he still doesn’t believe what Meghan said during her bombshell Oprah interview.
Piers told his 7.8million followers: “On Monday, I said I didn’t believe Meghan Markle in her Oprah interview.
“I’ve had time to reflect on this opinion, and I still don’t. If you did, OK. Freedom of speech is a hill I’m happy to die on.
“Thanks for all the love, and hate. I’m off to spend more time with my opinions.”
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He quoted Churchill on free speech, adding: "Some people's idea of free speech is that they are free to say what they are like, but if anyone says anything back, that is an outrage."
Broadcasting regulator Ofcom revealed on Tuesday they had received 41,015 complaints about Monday’s episode of the show, prompting them to launch an investigation under their “harm and offence rules”.
He had said he “didn’t believe a word” of Meghan’s interview, in which she said she “didn’t want to be alive” after receiving heavy public scrutiny.
Piers' co-host Susanna Reid paid tribute to her "outspoken, opinionated, and disruptive" on this morning's show as Ranvir Singh was rushed in to replace him.
She told fans: "A number of viewers will of course know the news and many of you will not, and be surprised that Piers isn't here this morning.
"Piers and I have disagreed on many things and that dynamic was one of the things that viewers loved about the programme.
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"He is without a doubt an outspoken, challenging, opinionated, disruptive broadcaster - he has many critics and he has many fans.
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"You will know that I disagreed with him about Meghan's interview, he himself clarified his comments about her mental health on the show yesterday.
"There are many voices on GMB, and everyone has their say - but now Piers has decided to leave the programme."
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Piers Morgan storms off GMB set after Alex Beresford blasts him over Meghan Markle interview
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