Actor Laurence Fox was involved in an extraordinary slanging match with a Question Time audience member last night who said Meghan Markle was hounded out of Britain because of racism.
The woman, who was not named but later to revealed to be Rachel Boyle, a lecturer in race ethnicity at Edge Hill University on Merseyside, called the star ‘a white privileged male’ when he denied her claims.
A visibly exasperated Fox, star of ITV drama Lewis and former husband of actress Billie Piper, looked to the sky and hit back: ‘Oh my God. I can’t help what I am, I was born like this, it’s an immutable characteristic: to call me a white privileged male is to be racist – you’re being racist’.
Ms Boyle, who describes herself as a BBC Breakfast newspaper reviewer on her social media, tweeted afterwards: ‘Fell out with @LozzaFox (not a***d), upset a (majority white) audience (not a***d) but called the treatment of Meghan Markle what it is ‘racism’. Thank you to @bbcquestiontime for having me’.
Laurence Fox rolls his eyes and looks to the ceiling as he denied treatment of Meghan Markle was racist, declaring ‘Oh my God’ when called a ‘white privileged male’
Actor Laurence Fox (left) was involved in an extraordinary slanging match last night with Question Time audience member Rachel Boyle (right), a lecturer in race ethnicity
Laurence couldn’t cope with what he was hearing and looked like he was banging his head on a desk
Fox (far right) was on the panel with Fiona Bruce (centre) with Culture Minister Helen Whately, Labour peer Shami Chakrabarti, SNP MP Alyn Smith and Madeline Grant from the Telegraph
Laurence enjoys an after show drink with host Fiona Bruce and Ms Grant
The exchange began when Ms Boyle said criticism of Meghan in the media had been motivated by ‘racism’, adding: ‘She’s a black woman and she has been torn to pieces.’
But Fox hit back, saying: ‘it’s not racism’ and continued: We’re the most tolerant, lovely country in Europe… it’s so easy to throw the charge of racism at everybody and it’s really starting to get boring’.
However, Ms Boyle angered him and much of the audience by replying: ‘What worries me about your comment is you are a white privileged male who has no experience in this.’
Fox responded: ‘I can’t help what I am, I was born like this, it’s an immutable characteristic, so to call me a white privileged male is to be racist – you’re being racist.’
It comes after Jeremy Corbyn provoked a row on Wednesday after he agreed with Prince Harry’s claim that press coverage of his wife Meghan had ‘racial undertones’.
The Labour leader’s spokesman said he had raised the issue of ‘intrusion’ in media reports about the couple’s relationship.
But Tory MP Philip Davies hit back, dismissing suggestions that criticism of the Duchess of Sussex was racist.
He said: ‘Anyone who remembers Harry and Meghan’s wedding will recall the huge popularity they had.
‘The criticism of Meghan – whether people think it is justified or not – is nothing to do with racism. That is utter codswallop.’
Mr Corbyn’s spokesman had earlier said he agreed with Prince Harry’s concerns about the press coverage of Meghan.
Ms Boyle tweeted afterwards: ‘Fell out with @LozzaFox (not arsed), upset a (majority white) audience (not arsed) but called the treatment of Meghan Markle what it is ‘racism’. Thank you to @bbcquestiontime for having me’
Fox posted this after the show – a nod to the extraordinary scenes that would be broadcast later
‘Jeremy has commented in the past in relation to Prince Harry and Meghan, about press intrusion and its impact on people and their families and, to use Prince Harry’s words as well, the ‘racial undertones’ in relation to how the media has approached Meghan,’ they said.
Asked to give examples, another spokesman said: ‘I’m not going to run through the full gamut of the coverage… but he agrees with the broad sentiment that Harry has put forward.’
In November 2016 Harry criticised the ‘wave of abuse and harassment’ his wife, who is mixed race, had faced from the media. He cited ‘racial undertones of comment pieces’ among his concerns. He also criticised ‘racist’ attacks by online trolls.
Rachel Boyle has appeared on the sofa reviewing newspapers for the BBC – but viewers pointed out she was introduced as an audience member
Twitter was ablaze with comments after the TV row between Mr Fox and the academic
During Prince William and Kate’s visit to Bradford on Wednesday, British boxing superstar Amir Khan implored the future king and queen to ‘sit together and resolve the situation’ with Harry and Meghan for the good of the Royal Family.
Speaking after meeting the royal visitors, he said the Duke and Duchess of Sussex had made ‘rash decisions’ but added that he believed Meghan would always be welcome in Britain.
Mr Khan also rejected suggestions the UK is a racist country.
He stressed: ‘I’ve been in many places around the world, I’ve travelled around the world from America to Pakistan…and always come back to England because that’s my home.’