Jeremy Clarkson said he is ‘horrified to have caused so much hurt’ and ‘shall be more careful in future’ after facing a backlash over comments he made in a newspaper column about how he ‘hated’ the Duchess of Sussex.
The Grand Tour presenter, 62, was blasted for saying he dreams of Meghan Markle being ‘paraded naked through the streets’, and that he wanted to see ‘people throwing lumps of excrement at her’.
And the former Top Gear host even said he hated the 41-year-old royal ‘not like he hated’ convicted serial killer Rose West. ‘I hate her on a cellular level’, he wrote.
And since the column appeared in The Sun on Friday, more than 6,000 people have complained to the press regulator IPSO it – a day after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex released the last installment of their Netflix docuseries, Harry & Meghan.
The couple have detailed their experiences leading to their decision to step away from royal duties and make a new start in the US in the six-part series on the streaming giant.
Jeremy Clarkson has been blasted for saying he dreams of Meghan Markle being ‘paraded naked through the streets’
In a column for The Sun, Clarkson said: ‘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.’
But Clarkson’s comments sparked outrage, with his own daughter, Emily, among those condemning him.
Posting on her Instagram page on Sunday, she 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 Grand Tour presenter, 62, said he despises the Duchess of Sussex ‘on a cellular level’ and felt ‘sorry’ for Prince Harry who is being ‘controlled’ by his wife
In a column for The Sun , Clarkson said: ‘I hate her. Not like I hate Nicola Sturgeon or Rose West. I hate her on a cellular level’
In an apparent reference to the iconic Walk of Shame scene in Game of Thrones, the ex-Top Gear host added that he wants to see ‘people throwing lumps of excrement at her’
However, former Home Secretary tweeted: ‘I’m your age @JeremyClarkson and I couldn’t disagree more with you. Why do you have to be so horrible?
‘I can’t believe it’s good for you and it certainly isn’t good for the rest of us.’
Another said: ‘I’m sorry but what has Meghan Markle done to deserve to be more hated than Rose West?
‘I’m trying to think what has she done that’s worse than what Rose did? This is just vile and disgusting. Is Jeremy Clarkson upset that Meghan stood up for herself?’
Ex-Labour spin doctor Ayesha Hazarika replied: ‘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?’
Clarkson continued: ‘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.
‘That makes me even angrier. Can’t they see everything that’s happening is so very obviously pre-planned.’
The first three installments of the Harry & Meghan, released earlier this month, focused on the British media’s coverage of the couple and the way it was influenced by racism.
The final three episodes see Harry, 38, directing more of his ire at Prince William, now heir to the throne, and speaking in more detail about how his relationship with the royal household broke down.
He recounted how William lashed out at him during a royal summit at Sandringham Castle in January 2020 to talk about Harry and Meghan’s plan to step down as senior royals and move away.
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