Clarkson doesn't say sorry but admits 'putting foot in it' amid backlash over hateful comments about Meghan Markle
19 December 2022, 14:07 | Updated: 19 December 2022, 14:39
Jeremy Clarkson has said he's "horrified" he wasn't "careful" enough when openly criticising Meghan Markle in his latest newspaper column, describing how his hate for her as existing "on a cellular level".
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Stopping short of an apology, the broadcaster and columnist had previously described his wish for Markle to be "parade naked through the streets" as people hurl excrement at her - a nod to a scene from popular television series Game of Thrones.
Causing widespread uproar, IPSO has so far received over 6,000 official complaints following its publication.
Taking to Twitter, Clarkson said he'd "rather put my foot in it" after his article received widespread condemnation from readers - including his own daughter.
However, the presenter and columnist was criticised again for failing to say sorry.
One person commented: “The word I think you are looking for is sorry.”
Oh dear. I’ve rather put my foot in it. In a column I wrote about Meghan, I made a clumsy reference to a scene in Game of Thrones and this has gone down badly with a great many people. I’m horrified to have caused so much hurt and I shall be more careful in future.
— Jeremy Clarkson (@JeremyClarkson) December 19, 2022
Another said: “Oh dear. You forgot to apologise in your apology.”
A third wrote: “The words "I'm sorry" and "apologise" and "I will reach out to her directly" are tellingly missing from this so-called apology,” followed by a clown emoji.
In a column for The Sun, Clarkson stated Meghan used "vivid bedroom promises to turn [Harry] into a warrior of woke".
The ex-Top Gear host also wrote that he despises the Duchess of Sussex "on a cellular level", referring to her as "A Woman Talking B*****ks".
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Jeremy Clarkson.His wonderful daughter Emily has just put out a statement on her instagram account. "I stand against everything that my Dad wrote about Meghan Markle". FYI Emily has spoken many times about how she suffered very badly from online abuse when she was younger. 💪🏼👏🏼 pic.twitter.com/pcVUgvlQQ0
— Carol Vorderman (@carolvorders) December 18, 2022
He added of Meghan: "I hate her. Not like I hate Nicola Sturgeon or Rose West. I hate her on a cellular level.
"At night, I’m unable to sleep as I lie there, grinding my teeth and 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.
"Everyone who’s my age thinks the same way."
Ex-Labour spin doctor Ayesha Hazarika said there was a clear link between Clarkson's comments and "why violence against women is at such a frightening level".
She tweeted this afternoon: "Many of us this week are reflecting on how misogyny has infected society & why violence against women is at such a frightening level.
"Wonder where these fantasies of hating & wanting to physically punish women come from?"
Author and Sussex adviser Omid Scobie added: "That would be the same Jeremy Clarkson who was at a private Christmas party with Camilla, the Queen Consort earlier this week (alongside guests including a Daily Mail editor and Piers Morgan)."
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