A full rundown on Piers Morgan and Meghan Markle's explosive feud - from friendship turning sour to him storming off live TV
From their first meeting in a pub to an explosive TV moment.... the friendship is no more!Believe it or not, Meghan Markle and Piers Morgan were once friends before their bond shattered in recent years.
When she began dating and eventually married Prince Harry, Piers accused the duchess of ‘ghosting’ him and they lost contact.
Meghan and Harry’s tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey was the catalyst of Piers’ exit from ITV news show Good Morning Britain. He stormed off set live on air following a debate over Meghan.
So, as Piers made a return to GMB on March 3 for the first time since his exit, let’s take a look at his seemingly one-sided fallout with the Duchess of Sussex.
When were Piers Morgan and Meghan Markle friends?
Piers and Meghan’s relationship goes back to 2016. The pair first met at a bar in Kensington in 2016 when Meghan was starring in the legal drama Suits.
Speaking on Instagram in May 2018, a day before Meghan’s wedding to Harry, Piers wrote: “Two years ago, I took Meghan Markle to my local pub for a drink (she had dirty martinis, I had Harvey’s best bitter) and then put her in a cab to her first date with Harry.”
She ghosted me, Ryan. Meghan Markle ghosted me.
Before their meeting, Piers said Meghan had reached out to him on Twitter after he followed her. She told him she was a “big fan”. He said contact between them continued and he thought they had a “good friendship building”.
During an interview, Piers said that he and Meghan “got on brilliantly” during the pub meeting. However, it wasn’t long before things turned sour.
Piers accused Meghan of ‘ghosting’ him
Speaking to Ryan Tubrid on RTÉ’s The Late Late Show in 2018, Piers said: “The next night [Harry and Meghan] had a solo dinner together, and that was the last I ever heard from Meghan Markle.
“She ghosted me, Ryan. Meghan Markle ghosted me. I really liked her. I just think she’s a slight social climber.”
That was just the start of Piers’ digs and swipes at Meghan and Harry. Many people online accused Piers of being ‘obsessed’ with the royal couple after a series of damning comments.
He would often call Meghan “Princess Pinocchio”.
Harry and Meghan’s Oprah interview sparked backlash from Piers
In early 2020, Prince Harry and Meghan announced they were stepping down from their senior royal roles. It’s something which garnered much criticism online.
Then in March 2021, the couple sat down for a tell-all interview with Oprah Winfrey. In the interview, they made a series of allegations about the monarchy.
One allegation was that there were ‘conversations and concerns’ within the family about “how dark” their son Archie’s skin color would be before he was born.
As a co-host on Good Morning Britain at the time, Piers didn’t hold back with his opinions against the couple and firmly supported the royal family.
It resulted in him clashing with some of his colleagues on the show, and walking off set before departing ITV.
Piers Morgan storming off GMB
On March 8 and 9, after the Oprah interview aired, Piers said he doubted Meghan’s comments about her mental health struggles and having suicidal thoughts. She had claimed that her request to senior place officials for help was rejected.
Piers said on GMB: “Who did you go to? What did they say to you? I’m sorry, I don’t believe a word she said, Meghan Markle. I wouldn’t believe it if she read me a weather report.
“The fact that she’s fired up this onslaught against our royal family I think is contemptible.”
UK’s mental health charity Mind expressed “disappointment” in Piers’ comments.
On March 9, Piers had a tense on-air argument with GMB meteorologist Alex Beresford. Alex told Piers: “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.”
Piers then cut in: “Okay, I’m done with this,” as he stormed off set whilst on air.
Thousands of complaints made to Ofcom over Piers’ comments about Duchess of Sussex
Piers’ comments about Meghan ended up sparking a record 58,000 complaints to TV watchdog Ofcom. Even Meghan herself made a complaint, Ofcom confirmed at the time.
Eventually, Ofcom cleared Piers of the complaints saying that restricting his views would be a “chilling restriction” on free expression. However, the watchdog criticised his “apparent disregard” for the subject of mental health and suicide.
On March 10, 2021, Piers’ exit from GMB was announced after he refused to apologise for his comments about Meghan.
At the time, he said on Instagram: “On Monday, I said I didn’t believe Meghan Markle in her Oprah interview. I’ve had time to reflect on this opinion, and I still don’t. If you did, that’s OK. Freedom of speech is a hill I’m happy to die on. Thanks for all the love, and hate. I’m off to spend more time with my opinions.”
ITV said: “Following discussions with ITV, Piers Morgan has decided now is the time to leave Good Morning Britain. ITV has accepted this decision and has nothing further to add.”
Piers returns to Good Morning Britain
Since his GMB exit, Piers has continued to speak out against Meghan and Harry. He has continued to slate the couple on his new TalkTV show Piers Morgan Uncensored.
On March 3, 2025, Piers made his first return to GMB following his exit. He joined his former co-star Susanna Reid and Ed Balls. He appeared to discuss Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s awkward exchange with US President Donald Trump recently.
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Piers said: “Hang on! Are we just going to ignore the fact that I haven’t been here for 1,453 days?”
He asked Susanna: “Am I not even going to get a hug?” to which she replied: “No I don’t want a hug.” Eventually, she gave in and had an awkward hug with Piers.
But there was no mention of Meghan during the chat. We wonder what he’ll have to say about Meghan’s new Netflix show With Love, Meghan when it premieres on March 4…
What do you think of Piers and Meghan’s fallout? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @RoyalInsiderOfficial.
