ITV have confirmed Piers Morgan has quit Good Morning Britain, amid complaints about his on-air comments about Meghan Markle this week.
The star clashed with GMB co-star Alex Beresford on the show on Tuesday, after his response to Meghan and husband Prince Harry’s interview with Oprah Winfrey which aired on Monday night. ITV confirmed: “Following discussions with ITV, Piers Morgan has decided now is the time to leave Good Morning Britain.
“ITV has accepted this decision and has nothing further to add.”
Piers himself took to Twitter just minutes before the statement was released by ITV, with nothing but an image of a clock.
Just hours earlier, it was revealed Ofcom would be investigating complaints made against GMB and the host following Monday’s tense episode.
ITV were also said to be having talks with the star, who would mark six years on the show this year.
After the couple’s tell-all chat with Winfrey aired in the US on Sunday night, Piers spent much of Monday’s GMB ranting about the bombshell allegations.
The host told viewers he was ‘sickened’ by the ‘two hour trashathon’ as he accused Harry and Meghan of likening the Royal Family to white supremacists.
He also dismissed Meghan’s account of her mental health battle, which has led to him coming under fire from mental health charity Mind.
Then on Tuesday, barely minutes into the show, Piers stormed off the set after being called out by Alex over his comments the day before.
Speaking about the couple’s chat with Oprah and their decision to leave the UK, Alex said: “They’ve had an overwhelming amount of negative press.
“You know, I watched the programme yesterday and, yes, they had some great press around the wedding, but what press is going to trash someone’s special day?
“There was bad press around the engagement before the engagement, and everything that has followed since has been incredibly damaging, quite clearly, to Meghan’s mental health and also to Harry.
“And I hear Piers say William has gone through the same thing but, do you know what, siblings experience tragedy in their life and one will be absolutely fine and brush it off.
“And the other will not be able to deal with it so strongly and that is clearly what has happened with Harry in this situation.
“He walked behind his mother’s coffin at a tender, tender age in front of the globe.
“That is going to shape a young boy for the rest of his life, so I think we all need to take a step back.
“And I understand that you don’t like Meghan Markle, you’ve made it so clear a number of times on this programme…”
“And I understand you’ve got a personal relationship with Meghan Markle or had one and she cut you off.
“She’s entitled to cut you off if she wants to. Has she said anything about you since she cut you off? I don’t think she has but yet you continue to trash her…”
Piers stood up and said: “OK, I’m done with this” and walked off set, saying: “Sorry, no… sorry, can’t do this…”
Piers eventually returned to the set, but he and Alex weren’t finished with being at loggerheads.
Ofcom revealed they had received over 40,000 complaints from horrified viewers, over the prior episode.
“I’m sorry, I don’t believe a word she said, Meghan Markle. I wouldn’t believe it if she read me a weather report,” Piers fired in response to Meghan saying she felt ‘suicidal’ while working as a senior royal.
