Piers Morgan: Sharon Osbourne and Gary Lineker among stars supporting presenter following Good Morning Britain exit

Morgan has stepped down from his role as anchor amid controversy over Meghan Markle comments

Sharon Osbourne and Gary Lineker are among the celebrities to voice support for Piers Morgan following his departure from Good Morning Britain. 

Morgan stepped down as co-anchor of the ITV morning show after six years, the broadcaster announced last night (9 March). The decision follows after the presenter’s recent comments about Meghan Markle attracted widespread criticism against both himself and ITV.

While many people who had been calling on ITV to fire the presenter have celebrated the news, a number of celebrities spoke out in support of Morgan amid the controversy.

Osbourne wrote on Twitter: “[Piers] I am with you. I stand by you. People forget that you’re paid for your opinion and you’re just speaking your truth.”

Sports broadcaster Gary Lineker tweeted in praise of Morgan following ITV’s announcement, writing that he is “sure [Morgan will] be back on the telly soon”.

RELATED: Follow live Piers Morgan updates after presenter leaves GMB

Lineker wrote: “Whether it’s a football manager, a television presenter or any profession for that matter, it’s always sad when someone loses their job. @piersmorgan is excellent at what he does and I’m sure he’ll be back on the telly soon.” 

George Galloway – who was fired from his TalkRadioShow after being accused of sharing anti-semitic views in 2019 – addressed the now-former GMB presenter on Twitter, stating: “Piers Morgan, You told me once ‘a sacking is an opportunity’.

“ It turned out that way for me and I hope it will for you. In fact, I’m sure it will. You’re a class-act and Box-Office too. Best of luck chum.”

Yesterday evening (9 March), it was revealed that broadcasting regulator Ofcom had received more than 41,000 complaints about Morgan’s behaviour and that an investigation would be launched into whether his comments broke the UK broadcasting code in regards to harm and offence.

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This morning (10 March), Susanna Reid appeared on the programme and addressed her co-anchor’s exit for the first time, stating: “Shows go on and on we go.”