Susanna Reid feels ‘awkward’ after Ofcom clears Piers Morgan
Susanna Reid speaks out after Ofcom vindicated Piers Morgan over Meghan Markle criticism and admits she feels ‘awkward’ because ‘on the one hand I’ve got my friend, on the other I have my ITV bosses’ – as his wife Celia reveals he is ‘jubilant’
Good Morning Britain’s Susanna Reid talks about Ofcom’s ruling for the first timeShe says it was ‘quite a moment’ when Piers Morgan walked off the set in March Ms Reid tells GMB today: ‘It’s obviously a slightly awkward moment right now’ Mr Morgan quit after ITV bosses were said to have told him to apologise or leave
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Susanna Reid told Good Morning Britain viewers today that she feels ‘awkward’ at being both an ITV employee and friends with Piers Morgan after Ofcom ruled he didn’t breach its broadcasting code with his criticism of Meghan Markle.
That has led to some calls for the MailOnline columnist to be reinstated as a GMB host after he was forced out by ITV chief executive Carolyn McCall when the Duchess of Sussex allegedly demanded his ‘head on a plate’.
But Ofcom yesterday completely exonerated Mr Morgan of causing ‘harm’ by voicing his opinion that he didn’t believe Meghan’s claims to Oprah Winfrey after they were aired in March.
The broadcasting watchdog said attempts to silence Mr Morgan amounted to a ‘chilling restriction on freedom of expression’ – but ITV have so far indicated that he won’t be returning to the show.
Ms Reid lent her support to her former co-star this morning, telling viewers it was ‘quite a moment’ when he walked off in March after a debate about Meghan Markle.
And his wife Celia Walden, who was also on GMB this morning, said her husband has ‘some irons in the fire’ and ‘won’t be kicking around the house for much longer.’
Ms Reid said: ‘What struck me about the Ofcom ruling, and let me just say, on the one hand, I’ve got my friend Piers Morgan, and on the other hand, I’ve got my bosses ITV.
Susanna Reid talks about the Ofcom ruling on ITV’s Good Morning Britain today
Mr Morgan’s wife Celia Walden was also on Good Morning Britain today, talking about her new novel Payday, and said her husband was ‘very jubilant’ following the ruling
Piers Morgan and his wife Celia Walden at the GQ Men of the Year Awards in London last night
‘So it’s obviously a slightly awkward moment right now. There is a very interesting decision.
‘Obviously the judgement was that Good Morning Britain did not break the broadcasting rules according to Ofcom because of the challenge and the context that was broadcast around Piers’s statements at the time.
‘Ofcom included this very significant freedom of speech declaration, took full account of freedom of expression, restricting his views would represent ‘an unwarranted and chilling restriction on freedom of expression’ and he was ‘entitled to say he disbelieved the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’. It’s all over the papers today as a ‘landmark judgement’.’
Mr Morgan’s wife Ms Walden also appeared on GMB this morning, talking about her new novel Payday, and said her husband was ‘very jubilant’ following the ruling.
She was also asked if he has a new role in the pipeline, and replied: ‘That is a good question. He has some irons in the fire.’
Ms Walden added: ‘He won’t be kicking around the house for much longer.’
She also said: ‘I think I must have been in the gym or something and then suddenly got home and everything had exploded. So it was a big deal, and there were lots of people outside the house. And it’s been a strange few months.
‘But I think Piers is very jubilant today, as you would expect, and I think that that Ofcom statement was very strongly worded and robust, and so that was great.’
Their comments come one day after Mr Morgan’s broadcast questioning the Duchess of Sussex’s claims over her mental health was cleared by regulators.
But the 56-year-old TV presenter, who subsequently stormed off the Good Morning Britain set after clashing with a colleague, will not be offered his job back.
Last night it was claimed that ITV’s director of television Kevin Lygo, described as a ‘big fan’ of Mr Morgan, was on a ‘one-man mission’ to bring back Mr Morgan, although an insider said he was currently ‘fighting a losing battle internally’.
Mr Morgan made comments on air in March appearing to cast doubt on Meghan’s claim in her Oprah Winfrey interview that she had suffered from suicidal thoughts.
He quit the show after ITV bosses were said to have told him to apologise or leave. A senior ITV source said last night that there was no question of Mr Morgan returning.
Mr Morgan described the decision as a ‘resounding victory for free speech’, adding it was ‘a resounding defeat’ for ‘Princess Pinocchio’ – his nickname for Meghan.
Ofcom suggested that restricting the views of Mr Morgan would represent ‘an unwarranted and chilling restriction on freedom of expression’ for both the broadcaster and its audience.
He had been ‘entitled to say he disbelieved the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s allegations and to hold and express strong views that rigorously challenged their account’.
But while Mr Morgan appeared open to resuming his position on the GMB sofa, it was made clear last night that ITV has no plans to restore him.
Mr Morgan, pictured with Ms Reid in March, quit ITV’s Good Morning Britain amid the row
Staff said they had thought bosses might pave the way for his return to the show, which lost viewers after he left.
On a social media post after the ruling was released, Mr Morgan had asked: ‘Do I get my job back?’
He told the Daily Mail: ‘Well it would seem that the reason why I was forced to leave has now been removed and technically I’m still under contract.
‘They are still paying me at the moment not to go in. So they could get their money’s worth if they want to.
‘Clearly Ofcom do not believe I should have been compelled to make an apology… So the ball is now back in ITV’s court.’
During the Oprah interview about royal life, Meghan claimed concerns for her mental health and suicidal thoughts had been ignored.
She also alleged that a senior royal made racist comments about the possible colour of her son Archie’s skin.
On GMB the following day, Mr Morgan said: ‘I’m sorry, I don’t believe a word she says, Meghan Markle. I wouldn’t believe it if she read me a weather report.’
Ofcom criticised Morgan for his ‘apparent disregard’ of the seriousness of someone expressing suicidal thoughts and described comments on the show as ‘potentially harmful and highly offensive’.
But other contributors, including co-presenter Susanna Reid, had balanced out his remarks with their extensive challenge of him.
Without that, Ofcom said, it would have been ‘seriously concerned’ and its decision had been ‘finely balanced’ – but ITV had ‘provided adequate protection to viewers’.
It added that Mr Morgan’s comments made about race had been ‘sufficiently contextualised’.
Last night Mr Morgan said the ruling would be a ‘wake-up call’ to Meghan not to ‘spray gun the Royal Family on global television’ without providing any evidence.
He added that it was a ‘significant moment in the battle for free speech against the woke brigade’.
ITV welcomed the ruling, which it said ‘sets out clearly that it was the balance and context the programme makers provided which was key in mitigating against the potential for harm and offence which could have been caused by Piers Morgan’s comments’.
Mr Morgan retorted: ‘That’s not what the Ofcom report says in its conclusion. I suggest ITV reads it again.’
ITV chief executive Dame Carolyn McCall was under pressure last night to justify the way Mr Morgan was forced out.
The TV presenter also became embroiled in a Twitter row with Omid Scobie, co-author of the Harry and Meghan biography Finding Freedom, who accused him of ‘reinforcing a dangerous stigma’ over mental health.
Mr Morgan told him: ‘Pipe down, Lickspittle.’
