Piers Morgan calls out Kirstie Allsopp over ‘cretinous’ attacks on BBC over coronavirus reporting
TV host spent the weekend accusing the BBC of ‘scaremongering’ over reports the new Covid strain could infect young people more easily
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Good Morning Britain presenter Piers Morgan has condemned TV host Kirstie Allsopp over her “cretinous” comments on the coronavirus pandemic.
The Location, Location, Location star attacked BBC Twitter accounts over the weekend, accusing the broadcaster of using its platform to “frighten parents, grandparents and children”.
“Call me when the BBC Twitter accounts have stopped using this platform to frighten parents, grandparents and children. Until then this is no place for me,” she tweeted.
“Covid is a horrible disease, to control it we have to accept all sorts of limitations, but scaring kids is unacceptable.”
She also accused various BBC accounts of “scaremongering” over reports that the new Covid variant is transmitting more readily in younger age groups, and could infect children more easily.
She claimed that children were “at far more danger from journeys in cars, or swimming, or trampolining than Covid”.
“Of all the people I least want to hear from when it comes to expert advice on coronavirus, TV estate agent Kirstie Allsopp and her cretinous trampoline analogies are top of the list,” Morgan tweeted in response, sharing a picture of Allsopp alongside his comment.
Morgan has been hailed as an “unlikely” voice of reason during the pandemic, regularly shutting down fellow celebrities who have shared conspiracy theories about the virus.
In November, he told Laurence Fox to “shut up” after the actor boasted about having a “large group” of friends over for lunch.
“You know what Laurence? Why don’t you just shut up?” Morgan said on that day’s episode of GMB. “Seriously. Why don’t you think about the NHS, think about these heroic people who right now in hospitals all around the country are continuing to save lives of complete strangers who have Covid-19, this lethal virus.”
He continued: “Think about all the people in care homes who can’t see their loved ones because they’re abiding by the rules because they don’t want to kill their parents or grandparents. Think about all the people who are making these decisions every day, not for themselves and their desire to carry on life ‘as normal’, but for other people, because they actually care about other people.”
Morgan went on to say that Fox’s “ridiculous tweet” epitomised the “small minority” of people in the country who refuse to adhere to rules and guidance surrounding the pandemic.
Morgan and his co-host Susanna Reid return to GMB this week following the Christmas break.
The show airs weekdays at 6am on ITV.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments