Sharon Osbourne broke down in tears while defending Piers Morgan’s criticism of Meghan Markle’s interview with Oprah Winfrey after he quit “Good Morning Britain.”
“@piersmorgan I am with you. I stand by you. People forget that you’re paid for your opinion and that you’re just speaking your truth,” Osbourne tweeted on Tuesday.
On Wednesday, March 10, Sharon Osbourne, and fellow co-host Sheryl Underwood on CBS’ “The Talk,” engaged in a heated conversation about Osbourne’s decision to support Morgan after he said he doesn’t “believe” Meghan Markle was ever suicidal while working for the British royal family.
Underwood asked Osbourne to expand on the position of her tweet on the show. Underwood explained that many saw her defense of Morgan as giving “validation and a safe haven to something that he uttered that is racist.”
Osbourne replied that she did not want to try to “slide out of” trouble, but she doesn’t understand his remarks to be racist. She does not find it fair that just because of her friendship with Morgan, she too can be accused of racism. “I very much feel like I’m about to be put in the electric chair because I have a friend, who many people think is a racist, so that makes me a racist?” she said. “What does it gotta do with me?”
When Underwood interrupted to cut to a commercial break, Osbourne was heard shouting censored expletives. Once the ladies returned, Osbourne was visibly upset and wiping her eyes with a tissue. She asked Underwood to defend her claims against Morgan, “I will ask you again, Sheryl. I’ve been asking you during the break. And don’t try and cry because if anyone should be crying, it should be me. This is the situation: You tell me where you have heard him say racist things. Educate me.”
Underwood then explained, “It was not the exact words of racism, it’s the implications and reaction to it. To not want to address that she is a Black woman and to try to dismiss it or to make it seem less than what it is, that’s what makes it racist.”
Then she shifted to Osbourne’s reaction and explained that she and the other ladies were not accusing her of being racist, in which Osbourne replied, “It’s too late. I think that seed’s already sowed.”
Still, Osbourne said that she doesn’t understand how Morgan’s comments were racist in nature, saying that it could just be that he does not like Markle. “Why does it have to be racist?” she asked. Amanda Kloots brought the discussion to a close by asking if Osbourne felt Morgan’s dislike for Markle was motivated by his loyalty to the royal family, in which she agreed.
Osbourne’s attitude on the show left viewers frustrated and angered.
This debate stemmed from after Piers Morgan stormed off the set of Good Morning Britain when his co-host Alex Beresford criticized him for his continued attacks on Meghan Markle. As Beresford said, “I understand that you’ve got a personal relationship with Meghan Markle or had one and she cut you off. She’s entitled to cut you off if she wants to. Has she said anything about you since she cut you off? I don’t think she has but yet you continue to trash her.”
This part of the conversation led for Morgan to walk off set telling Beresford, “Sorry. You can trash me mate, but not on my own show. See you later. Sorry, can’t do this.”
ITV has since confirmed that they have parted ways with Morgan, who was the subject of over 41,000 complaints received by Ofcom, a communications regulator in the U.K. According to E! News, the Duchess of Sussex also submitted a complaint over Morgan’s conduct, but it is unclear who it was sent to.
