The Sun newspaper has said it regrets the publication of a Jeremy Clarkson column about the Duchess of Sussex and is “sincerely sorry”.
In a statement, the newspaper said: “Columnists’ opinions are their own, but as a publisher, we realise that with free expression comes responsibility. We at The Sun regret the publication of this article and we are sincerely sorry.”
The apology comes after the piece last Friday (December 16), in which Clarkson said he “hated” Meghan, became the Independent Press Standards Organisation’s (Ipso) most complained-about article.
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In the article, Clarkson wrote that he had dreamed of Meghan being paraded through British towns naked and publicly shamed, adding that “everyone who’s my age thinks the same way”.
He also compared his level of detest for her to serial killer Rose West. He wrote: "Meghan, though, is a different story. I hate her. Not like I hate Nicola Sturgeon or Rose West. I hate her on a cellular level."
He continued: "At night, I’m unable to sleep as I lie there, grinding my teeth and dreaming of the day when she 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.
"But what makes me despair is that younger people, especially girls, think she’s pretty cool. They think she was a prisoner of Buckingham Palace, forced to talk about nothing but embroidery and kittens. That makes me even angrier. Can’t they see everything that’s happening is so very obviously pre-planned."
Ipso said the piece, which was removed from The Sun’s website on Monday (December 19) at Clarkson’s request, had received more than 17,500 complaints as of 9am on Tuesday – rising to 20,800 by 5pm.
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