Miriam Margolyes has come under fire for defending her comments about Andi Peters’ skin colour.
The actor, 85, sparked outrage last week when she used an outdated term to describe his ethnicity during an appearance on This Morning.
The Harry Potter star left Peters, 56, speechless after calling him a “mix” and saying he has a “Black daddy and a white mummy”.
Margolyes has now spoken out following the backlash, saying she simply asked about his heritage because she wants to know “how Black people feel”.
Speaking live on stage at an audience event about her book, the notoriously outspoken actor said: “I didn’t want to embarrass or hurt Andi because he seems very nice.
“I’d never met him before; I didn’t know who he was and I didn’t know he was Black until I saw him. When you see someone, of course you know they’re Black.”
The author went on: “I wanted to know what he thought about it because that’s what interests me. How do Black people feel? How do Brown people feel? How do fat people feel?”
She also used an offensive term to describe disabled people while asking how they “feel”.
Margolyes continued: “You see what I mean? All of us feel something about who we are and how people see us, what they think of us.”
The host interjected, “In other words you wanted to discuss his identity with him,” which Margolyes agreed with.
“I am fascinated by other people. They are the people that interest me, not the celebrities so much. It’s everybody. What their story is, what made them who they are, why you are the way you are,” she said.
The exchange was shared on TikTok, where viewers shared their objections to Margolyes’ defence.
“Just dug herself a deeper hole, she’s not funny at all, it’s so bizarre, an inappropriate question, it’s none of her business how people feel, Google exists, especially when she doesn’t know them personally!!!” one wrote.
“’I didn’t know he was black until I saw him’ - what? Why is that even a thought? I bet she’s never in her life said, ‘Oh I didn’t know you were white,’” another added.
@benrdavis Miriam Margolyes has finally spoken about THAT moment with Andi Peters on This Morning. 👀 This is the first time she’s addressed it since the incident. What do you make of her response? #fyp #foryou #miriammargolyes #foryoupage #thismorning
♬ original sound - Ben Davis
“So she wanted him to explain his Black existence on a national TV show during an entertainment segment?” a third posted.
Another user commented: “I usually like her but lady, just apologise.”
Margolyes sparked backlash after interrogating Peters on his heritage on This Morning last Thursday.
After imitating Peters’ co-host Christine Lampard’s Northern Irish accent, she turned to Peters and asked, “What are you?” to which he responded, looking baffled: “What am I? I’m me.”
She went on: “Well, you’re a mix, aren’t you? So you’ve got a Black daddy and a white mummy.”
Looking speechless, Peters explained: “No, no, no, both my parents are Black.”
Margolyes said: “Both parents are Black?” She then used an outdated term to describe the colour of Peters’ skin.
Peters jokingly asked if his makeup artist had used a “lighter shade than normal”.
However, Margolyes repeated the term and said: “That’s what they call it in America. When someone isn’t deeply Black.”
Peters said, “I didn’t even know there were shades,” to which the actor insisted: “There are shades. And this is what we...”
Peters tried to interject with another quip, pressing a finger to his earpiece and joking: “The producers are getting nervous now!”
“Don't be nervous, we welcome everybody,” Margolyes responded. “That's what I want to write about in my book. It's about inclusion. Not that there are people who need to be pushed out. And I'm not going to say who they are. You've got to read the book to find out.”
Peters replied: “There we go! What a way to... and that’s how we will end this. On a short plug for the book.”
Her new book, Miriam’s Full English: A Grand Tour of All Our Best Bits, “explores Britain's identity, examining fairness, free speech, and what unites Scotland, Wales, England, and Ireland”, according to its description.
The live exchange was later removed from the ITVX version of the interview.
Presenter Jeremy Vine later called out Margolyes for having “no filter” and praised Peters for handling her comments “brilliantly”. Peters responded by thanking Vine and adding: “As you know we have to be ready for anything.”
Viewers condemned Margolyes’ “vile” and “disgusting” comments on social media. The Standard has contacted her representative for comment.
The actor admitted she gets told to “keep her mouth shut” in an article she penned for The Guardian just days before the clash with Peters.
Reflecting on the “nasty” global political climate in 2026, she wrote: “The Britain I grew up in, though – that feels almost unrecognisable, and everyone I speak to says the same thing.”
She went on: “The things we took for granted – free speech, the Post Office, our local bank, even the home telephone – are disappearing. The US is an enemy. Evil oligarchs and their influence stalk the world, my world, your world.
“You’re brave to open your mouth these days. Indeed, many have demanded I keep mine shut. But I can’t. The present has become threatening, hostile and unwelcoming to us – much as our shores must feel to asylum seekers, as they scramble for a foothold in our United Kingdom.”
This isn’t the first time the Little Dorrit and Babe actor - who last year shared plans to move to Italy - has sparked outcry with her comments about people’s race.
In 2024, she was blasted for asking Australian presenter Waleed Aly about his skin colour during an appearance on the panel show, The Project.
She said to him: “What are you by the way? You’re sort of brown.”
