London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Oct 21, 2025

Jeremy Clarkson says he is 'horrified' over Meghan column

Jeremy Clarkson says he is 'horrified' over Meghan column

Broadcaster Jeremy Clarkson has said he is "horrified" after "causing so much hurt" in a column he wrote in the Sun about the Duchess of Sussex.

More than 12,000 complaints have been made to the press regulator after Clarkson wrote on Friday that he "hated [Meghan] on a cellular level".

In a tweet on Monday, he said: "Oh dear. I've rather put my foot in it."

The column has now been removed from the Sun's website, at Clarkson's request, and replaced with his tweet.

In his message to followers, posted on Monday, described a reference he made to a scene in Game of Thrones as "clumsy".

"I'm horrified to have caused so much hurt and I shall be more careful in future," he said.



"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."

Ipso, the independent press standards organisation, told BBC News the complaints were being assessed in accordance with its standard procedure.

Clarkson's comments were widely criticised on social media over the weekend.

On Sunday, Clarkson's own daughter Emily said: "I want to make it very clear that I stand against everything my dad wrote about Meghan Markle."

The total number of complaints made to Ipso in 2021 was 14,355. The Sun told BBC News earlier on Monday it did not have anything further to add.


Emily and Jeremy Clarkson, pictured in 2017

Writing in his original column, Clarkson said: "At night, I'm unable to sleep as I lie there, grinding my teeth and dreaming of the day when she [Meghan] 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," he added. "But what makes me despair is that younger people, especially girls, think she's pretty cool. They think she was a prisoner of Buckingham Palace, forced to talk about nothing but embroidery and kittens."

His column followed the release of the last three episodes of Netflix's docuseries Harry & Meghan on Thursday.

Posting on her Instagram page on Sunday, podcast host Emily Clarkson said she supports those "targeted with online hatred".

"My views are and have always been clear when it comes to misogyny, bullying and the treatment of women by the media," she wrote.

"I want to make it very clear that I stand against everything my dad wrote about Meghan Markle."

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex met with Nicola Sturgeon in 2018


Elsewhere in the article, Clarkson compared his hatred of Meghan with that of Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.

He said: "Meghan, though, is a different story. I hate her. Not like I hate Nicola Sturgeon or Rose West. I hate her on a cellular level."

West is a serial killer who, along with her husband Fred, murdered at least 12 young girls over 20 years.

On Monday, Sturgeon told BBC Scotland: "The overwhelming emotion I have for men like Jeremy Clarkson is pity.

"I can't imagine what it must be like to be so consumed and distorted by hate of other people, and in his case it appears women in particular, that you end up writing that toxic, vile abuse."

She added: "Freedom of speech is really important and one of the values all of us cherish. But all of us, as we exercise those important rights, have to behave with a degree of responsibility."

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been critical over how they're covered in the press


In last week's final instalment of their Netflix series, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex spoke about the mental health impact the tabloid media has on them.

The couple argued that Meghan's biracial heritage was often an underlying factor in what they described as a relentless tabloid campaign against her, and in racist abuse she suffered online.

Emily Clarkson has previously criticised the media for being "poisonously misogynistic" in its coverage of the Duchess, as well as other women.

Other high-profile Twitter users who criticised Clarkson's column included Carol Vorderman, Edith Bowman, and John Bishop.


But Alex Phillips, a journalist and former Brexit Party MEP, defended Clarkson, telling ITV's Good Morning Britain she believed he is "deliberately pushing boundaries to be offensive".

She said he's "not there to be taken seriously" and "his word is there to be found funny, and it always has been".

Phillips added: "Taking something that happened in Game of Thrones, one of the most widely-watched TV series... Does he mean it? Of course he doesn't mean it."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
Bessent Accuses China of Dragging Down Global Economy Amid New Trade Curbs
U.S. Revokes Visas of Foreign Nationals Who ‘Celebrated’ Charlie Kirk’s Assassination
AI and Cybersecurity at Forefront as GITEX Global 2025 Kicks Off in Dubai
×