ITV hints it may SACK 'awful' Jeremy Clarkson as host of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire

ITV has hinted that it may sack Jeremy Clarkson as the host of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire after controversial comments he made about Meghan Markle over the weekend.

The former Top Gear presenter wrote in his column in The Sun that he was “dreaming of the day when she (the Duchess) 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”.

Mr. Clarkson faced public backlash for his comments as The Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) received 20,800 complaints by 5pm on Tuesday – the most complaints ever recorded

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Jeremy Clarkson asked The Sun to remove his column about Meghan Markle after receiving public backlash
Ian West

Kevin Lygo, the managing director of ITV Studios, said: “I would say what he writes in a newspaper column... We have no control over what he says. We hire him as a consummate broadcaster of the most famous quiz on television, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?

“So it's not quite in our wheelhouse, but I don't know what he was thinking when he wrote that. It was awful.”

When asked if ITV would keep Mr. Clarkson as host of the quiz show, Mr Lygo said: “Yes, at the moment we are.

Droves of MPs have weighed in on the dispute, asking The Sun to take “action” against Mr. Clarkson for his column.

A letter, written by Caroline Nokes, the Tory Chair of the Women and Equalities Select Committee was sent to Victoria Newton, the editor of The Sun, which said: “Enough is enough.”

A total of 54 female and 11 male MPs signed the letter adding that “hateful articles” like Clarkson’s column “do not exist in a vacuum” and “directly contribute” to threats like those previously received by the Duchess.

An ITV boss has said Jeremy Clarkson's column about Meghan Markle was "awful"
PA Features Archive/Press Association Images

The letter stated: “We are horrified at the recent article by Jeremy Clarkson in your publication. As parliamentarians of every persuasion, we condemn in the strongest terms the violent misogynistic language against the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle.

“This sort of language has no place in our country, and it is unacceptable that it was allowed to be published in a mainstream newspaper.”

On Monday evening, The Sun removed the column following Mr. Clarkson’s tweet which said he was “horrified to have caused so much hurt”

Scotland Yard said it had received a number of complaints against Mr. Clarkson but that no criminal offences had been identified.

Speaking to the Telegraph a spokesman said: “A number of reports have been made to police following the publication of an article in a national newspaper on December 17.

“The allegations have been assessed, no offences have been identified and no further action will be taken”