Piers Morgan is a name we see almost every day, as the British Journalist and public figure has many opinions which he likes to share, loudly. Over the years, he has been at the centre of many controversies, thanks to his position on Good Morning Britain and Twitter account.
But one of the celebrities he seems to but heads with more often than any other is Meghan Markle. Here is everything you need to know about their relationship, including where Pier’s vendetta against Meghan seemed to begin all those years ago…
2015
Back in 2015, Piers Morgan and Meghan Markle first connected after she sent him a direct message on Twitter saying she was a ‘big fan’ of Piers. According to Piers, the two spoke on a regular basis for the next few months and spoke about all sorts. Including calligraphy, gun violence and the show she starred in Suits.
In fact, Meghan is the one who introduced Piers to her fellow co-star Rick Hoffman, known on the show as Louis Litt. Rick was even invited to London by Piers, and in early 2016 he appeared on Good Morning Britain with Piers.
2016
The American actress, campaigner, and blogger first fell into the centre of the British media in 2016 when she and Prince Harry met in London during the summer of 2016 after being introduced by mutual friends.
However, as reported by the Daily Mail in November 2016, Meghan and Piers met for the first time in June 2016 at a pub. Apparently, the pair had a 90-minute chat, and she told him about her career, including how she used to work as a suitcase girl on Deal or No Deal. They even spoke about politics and Donald Trump. Piers is quoted to told the Daily Mail: “She’s got beauty, brains, charm, and a great sense of humour.” and that “Meghan Markle is perfect princess material.”
This trip to the pub ended with Piers sending Meghan off in a cab, which she took to a party where she met Prince Harry. Apparently, Meghan and Harry had dinner together the following night, following which she is said to have ‘ghosted’ Piers.
But as we now know, she and Harry wanted to keep their relationship private at the start, which may have played a part in why she wanted to keep away from one of the UK’s most outspoken journalists.
It’s hard to believe that the pair were capable of exchanging friendly chats and compliments in 2016, as in recent years they have been shown to dislike one another, with Piers making some particularly harsh remarks.
2017
This was the year that Piers vendetta against Meghan first started to become clear, as during November 2017, Harry and Meghan announced their engagement. People across the world celebrated after hearing the announcement, but it wasn’t long before Piers has his say on the matter.
Piers Morgan replied to the official Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall’s engagement tweet to congratulate the newly engaged couple. He said:
Congrats Meghan & Harry.
My friend will make the perfect modern bride.
ps Do I get an invite @meghanmarkle? https://t.co/bTSdS9V4RT— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) November 27, 2017
The following day he also shared his thoughts on Good Morning Britain. When describing the engagement memorabilia, he said: “It doesn’t get cheaper, tackier, or nastier than this.”
Piers also said: “If Harry and Meghan are tuning in, I’m sure they are; Meghan was a big fan of the show until she met Harry and heartlessly ditched me,” before adding, “We wish them all the very best, we’re very happy for them.”
2018
Things really began to heat up between Piers and Meghan in 2018, the year she and Harry got married at Westminster Abbey. Piers struck out, unable to believe that Meghan had none of her family at the wedding, except her mum, yet filled it with celebrities she hardly knew. Including Oprah Winfrey, George and Amal Clooney, and national favourites David and Victoria Beckham.
Despite this, Piers also said more positive things about the couples £32 million wedding, including: “Their marriage ceremony was the most enjoyable and unpredictable Royal Weddings I’ve ever experienced.”
Months after the wedding, in October, Meghan and Harry revealed that they were expecting their first child together. This announcement came at the start of the couples first Royal Tour together, where they went to Australia, New Zealand, Tonga, and Figi.
The following month, Piers Morgan published a column about Meghan for The Mail Online, which he entitled ‘Meghan Markle is a ruthless social climbing actress who has landed the role of her life and is determined to milk it for all she can – and that’s why the Palace is beginning to turn on her’.
In this tell-all article, Piers went into detail about how both Meghan Markle and her co-star Rick Hoffman had ghosted him and that he found their behaviour rude. Piers also said: “I’ve been ‘played’ by a couple of B-list actors, who were clearly just using me to advance their careers.”
While we will never know if this was the case, it is interesting how communication between the so-called friends stopped after Meghan met someone with more influence.
2019
In July 2019, Piers said on Good Morning Britain that Meghan to go back to America for the privacy she wants, after her security guard told someone not to take photos of her at Wimbledon. Piers said: “If you want to go to a private place, don’t go to the Royal Box at Wimbledon.”
This statement is fair enough, as Wimbledon is already an event known for attracting high profile people, but the Royal Box is known for hosting the most high profile people. Therefore it will always be a huge area of interest for anyone at Wimbledon or watching it on TV.
However, Piers statement caused a lot of controversy, with many peoples stating that Piers has an unhealthy obsession with Meghan, and it wasn’t long until he spoke out about her again.
Later that month, Piers shared his unhappiness that the royal couples newborn son, Archie, would be having a private christening, with less than 25 people attending. The couple even denied the media access and released their own photos afterwards.
Piers accused the couple of treating the media like a tap they could turn on and off whenever it suits them and refers to all the privacy they want whilst their wedding was media galore. He said: “On the one hand they want privacy…on the other, they want their cake and eat it.”
Many people agreed with Piers about the situation, especially as Meghan and Harry had recently used millions of pounds from taxpayers to refurbish Frogmore Cottage, where they were living at the time. Money which they have since paid back according to an announcement in 2020.
Although royal christenings are usually quite private, and Archie is seventh in line to the crown, meaning his christening didn’t necessarily need to be a public event.
2020
It was only a few days into 2020 that Harry and Meghan announced that they would be stepping back as senior members of the royal family. So that they could split their time between the UK and the USA whilst also becoming financially independent. This was an event dubbed as ‘Megxit’.
Shortly after the announcement, Piers took to Twitter to share his thoughts. He said: “People say I’m too critical of Meghan Markle – but she ditched her family, ditched her dad, ditched most of her old friends, split Harry from William & has now split him from the Royal Family. I rest my case.”
In May, Piers admitted he felt he might have taken his comments a bit too far. However, a few months later in September, he spoke out against the couple AGAIN. He said: “There’s not a day that goes by without these two whining, suing, complaining.”
2021
On Valentines Day, Meghan and Harry announced that they were expecting their second child by releasing a pregnancy photo. Piers Morgan quickly dubbed the photo as ‘cheesy’ and said it was an attempt for more media attention.
Shortly after the announcement of Meghan’s pregnancy, the couple were once again in the tabloids, following their interview with Oprah Winfrey. Piers explained on Good Morning Britain the day following the interview’s release, that he felt sickened by the two-hour special, stating: “This is a two-hour trash-a-thon of our monarchy and the royal family.”
Piers also shared his views on Twitter, stating that he wouldn’t believe Meghan if she gave him a weather report and asking if it was too late for the Oscar nominations. He also walked off the show after he was condemned by Alex Beresford about his treatment of Meghan.
Following these comments, ITV has announced that Piers Morgan will be leaving Good Morning Britain. This comes after 41,000 complaints were made to Ofcom about his comments regarding Meghan’s mental health. It is the second-highest number of complaints Ofcom has ever received.
Since the announcement was made, Piers tweeted saying that “freedom of speech is a hill [he’s] happy to die on”. Various other presenters such as Sharon Osbourne, Dan Walker and Gary Lineker have expressed sympathies for Piers, whilst others are ecstatic at his removal from the show.
