Jeremy Clarkson still has his Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? gig (Picture: ITV)
Jeremy Clarkson will remain in his Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? job at ITV following his disgusting Meghan Markle column.
The 62-year-old presenter ignited national outrage after writing in The Sun that he ‘hated’ the Duchess of Sussex, with the piece sparking over 20,800 complaints to the Independent Press Standards Organisation (Ipso).
While Clarkson has since addressed his now-deleted column, there has been much chatter over what will become of his presenting jobs, however, it seems that he is very much safe at ITV for now.
Speaking at a Broadcasting Press Guild event in London on Tuesday, the network’s boss, Kevin Lygo, said that Clarkson would keep his hosting position.
‘I would say what he writes in a newspaper column… We have no control over what he says,’ Mr Lygo told audiences.
Clarkson has been slataed for his hateful column in which is targetted Meghan Markle (Picture: Netflix)
The boss of ITV said they have no control over what Clarkson says (Picture: ITV)
‘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.’
Asked if ITV will keep Clarkson as host of the quiz show, a position he inherited from Chris Tarrant in 2018, Mr Lygo replied: ‘Yes, at the moment we are.’
Pressed on whether the petrolhead represents ITV’s values, Mr Lygo said: ‘No, of course he doesn’t in that instance.’
On Monday, Clarkson, who also hosts The Grand Tour on Prime Video, responded to the controversy, writing on Twitter: ‘Oh dear. I’ve rather put my foot in it.
More: Trending
‘In a column I wrote about Meghan, I made a clumsy reference to a scene in Game of Thrones and this has gone down badly with a great many people.
‘I’m horrified to have caused so much hurt and I shall be more careful in future.’
The piece was removed from The Sun’s website on Monday at Clarkson’s request.
Got a story?
If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us [email protected], calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.
The boss of ITV confirmed the news.
