‘He, she, it… whatever he is’: Jeremy Clarkson struggles to grasp Eddie Izzard’s feminine pronouns

Jeremy Clarkson struggled to grasp Eddie Izzard’s feminine pronouns at the ITV Entertainment Schedule Launch on Tuesday.

The broadcaster, 62, was promoting the new series of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? when he made the blunder about Eddie, 60, who appears in a celebrity special and identifies as she/her.

Speaking to MailOnline and other press at White City House on Tuesday, he then admitted he didn’t even know who half the stars were in the famous hot seat during filming.

When asked by Joel Dommett which big names had appeared on the show this season, he replied: ‘Eddie Izzard obviously is very bright so he was fun.’

Realising his gender-related gaffe, the star struggled to correct himself, saying: ‘She, them, it. I don’t know what you say! She? She?’

When the crowd wrongly corrected him with ‘they’, Jeremy said, ‘They… whatever he is. I knew there was a word. There was a pronoun I had forgotten. They were very good.’

And speaking about the celebrity version of the game show, he explained, ‘Honestly I much prefer doing the ordinary one.

Oh dear: The broadcaster, 62, was promoting Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? when he made the blunder about Eddie, 60, who appears in a celebrity special and identifies as she/her

‘With the celebrity one, I don’t have a f*****g clue who half the people are. I have to read up on who they are.’

Eddie herself has previously said although she prefers that people correctly use her feminine pronouns, she doesn’t mind if mistakes are made.

In July last year, Eddie asked to be called ‘she’, despite previously refusing to be pinned down on gender, describing an identity that is ‘boyish and girlish’.

While receiving an honorary degree at Swansea University, she made the request.

The ceremony’s press release used female pronouns to celebrate Izzard’s career, saying: ‘In 2009 she completed 43 marathons in 51 days…

‘She has been a Labour party activist for most of her life… She twice attempted to be elected for a seat on Labour’s National Executive.’ A university spokesman said: ‘We were asked by Eddie to use her/she pronouns in the press release.’

The comedian identified as a transvestite on rising to prominence in the 80s, but more recently has preferred to use the term ‘transgender’.

The star told The Mail on Sunday in September: ‘When I’m in girl mode I am happy to be known as ‘she’ and when I’m in boy-mode, I am happy to be known as ‘he’. But I am equally happy to be referred to as Eddie or ‘Hey mate’.’

Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? returns on September 3 at 9:30pm on ITV. 

Host: And speaking about the celebrity version of the game show, he explained, ‘Honestly I much prefer doing the ordinary one’ (pictured in 2020)