His explosive comments about Meghan Markle divided the nation, led to his departure from Good Morning Britain, and drew 57,793 complaints – the highest ever in Ofcom’s 18-year history. But last week, Piers Morgan got the last laugh, after the media regulator rejected all complaints made against him and ITV, saying that restricting the views he voiced back in March, following Meghan and Prince Harry’s infamous Oprah interview, would have been an “unwarranted and chilling restriction on freedom of expression”.
Taking to Twitter following the ruling, Piers said he was “delighted” and described it as “a resounding victory for free speech and a resounding defeat for Princess Pinocchio.”
But while the ex-GMB host celebrated, there was – of course – one person in particular who was positively fuming: Meghan herself. The Duchess of Sussex had been among the almost 58k people who lodged complaints against Piers and ITV, after he said live on air that he refused to believe her claims of feeling suicidal while working as a senior royal – and general consensus is that Meghan won’t be taking Ofcom’s verdict lying down.
“I think she’ll be absolutely livid,” said royal biographer Angela Levin last week, after Ofcom stated that “consistent with freedom of expression, Mr Morgan was entitled to say he disbelieved” Meghan and Harry’s allegations of neglect from inside the palace. “Meghan will ask her lawyers to see what they can do about it. She can’t cope with someone saying she didn’t tell the truth, because she is all about compassion and understanding and caring for people.” Finding Freedom author – and supposed friend to the Sussexes – Omid Scobie also weighed in, questioning Ofcom’s decision and saying that “discrediting a person’s mental health issues on TV reinforced a dangerous stigma and put others at risk”.
CHECK OUT Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's relationship timeline
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's relationship timeline
1 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle met in London in July 2016.
2 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
They were introduced by mutual friend Markus Anderson, who is the director of Soho House.
3 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
In October 2016, the Express became the first newspaper to publish news that Prince Harry had a new girlfriend.
4 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
On November 8th 2016, Kensington Palace released an unprecedented statement which referring to Markle as Harry's girlfriend for the first time.
5 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
In the statement, Prince Harry condemned the 'wave of abuse and harrassment' faced by Markle, saying that he was 'worried about Ms. Markle's safety and is deeply disappointed that he has not been able to protect her.'
6 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Marklec
'It is not right that a few months into a relationship with him that Ms. Markle should be subjected to such a storm,' the statement continued.
7 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The couple were papped together for the first time in December 2016, shopping for a Christmas tree in London at the Pines and Needles store.
8 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Later that week, they were seen on London's West End, catching a performance of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.
9 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
In February, Prince Harry wore a his 'n' hers bracelet on the cover of Town & Country magazine, just weeks after Markle was pictured wearing the same one on Instagram.
10 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
In March 2017, Meghan joined Prince Harry in the Caribbean for the wedding of his friend's Tom 'Skippy' Inskip and Lara Hughes-Young.
11 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
It was the first time that Markle accompanied Harry to a wedding, marking another milestone occasion for the couple.
12 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The first public event attended by the couple was the polo at Coworth Park in May 2017.
13 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Later in May, Markle attended the party portion of Pippa Middleton's wedding to James Middelton.
14 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Prince Harry was seen driving her to the event after the church ceremony.
15 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The couple were photographed together the following day at the wheelchair tennis.
16 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The couple 'broke with royal protocol' by holding hands and appearing affectionate while at the Invictus Games.
17 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
In an interview with Vanity Fair, Meghan referred to Harry as her boyfriend numerous times, saying: 'We're a couple. We're in love. I'm sure there will be a time when we will have to come forward and present ourselves and have stories to tell, but I hope what people understand is that this is our time.'
18 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
In early November 2017, it was reported that Meghan Markle was leaving Suits after seven series.
19 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Much was made of Markle's choice of outfit: ripped jeans and a white blouse called 'The Husband'.
20 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Although Prince Harry was sat next to First Lady Melania Trump at the event, rather than his girlfriend, she was only seated a few rows behind him.
21 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The couple made their first official public appearance in September, when Markle attended the opening of Prince Harry's Invictus Games.
22 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
In mid-November 2017, bookies suspending betting on an impending royal engagement, as speculation grew that an announcement was about to be made.
23 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
On November 27th 2017, Prince Charles announced the engagement of his younger son Prince Harry and Meghan Markle after 15 months of dating.
24 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The couple later appeared at a photocall, with Markle wearing a white dress coat by Canadian brand Line The Label. The website has subsequently crashed.
25 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The engagement ring, by Cleave and Company, was reportedly designed by Prince Harry himself, using two stones that belonged to Princess Diana.
26 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
When asked by waiting photographers if the proposal was romantic, Harry joked 'of course!'
27 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
The couple indulged in some PDA at the closing ceremony.
28 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Meghan wore a maroon midi dress with a pleated chiffon skirt by one of her favourite Canadian brands Aritzia.
29 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
She teamed it with a matching burgundy biker jacket by Mackage.
30 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Prince Harry reportedly spent time with Meghan's mother Doria while at the Games too.
31 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
Prince Harry was photographed kissing Meghan.
32 of 32Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
In late September 2017, it was reported that Meghan had met the Queen, prompting speculation that the relationship was getting serious.
GMB viewers will remember the uproar that ensued in March, following the airing of that interview with Oprah Winfrey. During the chat with Harry and Meghan, the couple claimed they had been subjected to racism by the royal family, while Meghan said she’d contemplated taking her own life and had been denied help. The next morning, Piers voiced his outrage, saying he “didn’t believe a word” of what she had said, prompting an on-air barney between him and weatherman Alex Beresford that saw Piers storm off and later hand in his resignation, as he refused to apologise.
He later clarified that he didn’t believe that Meghan had told a senior member of the royal household that she was struggling, but insisted, “Freedom of speech is a hill I’m happy to die on.”
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Last week, Piers did his utmost to celebrate Ofcom’s verdict as loudly as possible – revealing that Meghan had written directly to ITV boss Dame Carolyn McCall “demanding my head on a platter”. He wrote, “In a democracy, we have a thing called free speech and freedom of expression, and you’re allowed to have an opinion, even if Meghan and Harry in their California mansion don’t like it. [They] should reflect on this and they should work out whether it is fair of them to spray gun the British royal family with lurid allegations without producing a shred of evidence.”
Piers then rounded off his victorious day by heading to the GQ Men Of The Year Awards – where, in a case of rather awkward timing, he sat in the audience as Prince Harry presented an award via video link. Appearing on the big screen, Harry honoured the makers of the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab and slammed “those who peddle in lies and fear” in the news and on social media for drumming up anti-vax feeling. Keeping things brief, Piers simply tweeted, “#Awks.”
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