Jeremy Clarkson’s Meghan Markle Column Receives Record Number Of Complaints
The Grand Tour host Jeremy Clarkson’s recent controversial column about Meghan Markle has been revealed to be the most complained about column the regulator’s history.
In the since-removed column, Clarkson said he “hated Meghan Markle on a cellular level” and then that he was “dreaming of the day when she is made to parade naked through the streets of every town in Britain while the crowds chant, ‘Shame!’ and throw lumps of excrement at her”.
The Independent Press Standards Organisation (Ipso) has revealed that it was the most complained about column with over 17,500 complaint all together, the previous record of number of complaints received was 14,355 in 2021. A spokesperson for Ipso explained to the PA news agency:
“We will follow our usual processes to examine the complaints we have received. This will take longer than usual because of the volume of complaints.”
The column instantly received backlash on social media, including from TV personality Carole Vorderman and also Clarkson’s daughter, Emily.
Vorderman wrote about Clarkson’s comments in her Daily Express column after he said “everyone my age feels the same way.” Vorderman wrote:
“After the Harry and Meghan Netflix series, I’d heard more than enough discussion about every tiny nuance.
“But Jeremy Clarkson’s take – that the Duchess ought to be paraded naked and have excrement thrown at her – didn’t just cross the line, it obliterated it.
“Not on any level, in any circumstance, is it OK to write this stuff about any woman. It’s time we all called out violent hatred of any woman.
“Whatever our thoughts about the couple, and I’m not particularly interested, Clarkson’s words normalise hatred.”
A group of MPs also complained, writing a letter to Victoria Newton, editor of The Sun asking for action to be taken. The letter read:
“We are horrified at the recent article by Jeremy Clarkson in your publication.”
“We cannot allow this type of behaviour to go unchecked any longer.”
The former Top Gear host took to social media to say he was “horrified to have caused so much hurt” and that he would “be more careful in the future.”
Members of the public had been calling for Clarkson to be dropped from ITV as the ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire’ host as well as from The Sun, The Sunday Times, and Amazon. ITV have confirmed that although they do not agree with what Clarkson has said, they will not be dropping him at the moment.