UK TV star Jeremy Clarkson has left fans horrified after making "disgusting" comments about Meghan Markle following the release of her docuseries on Netflix.
Harry and Meghan, a six-part series about the couple's relationship and their journey to leaving the Royal Family, has dominated the headlines since its release this month.
While many viewers were supportive of Prince Harry, 38, and Markle, 41, speaking out about their perspective on how they were treated by the press, others have been more critical about them airing personal matters on such a public platform.
One such critic is former Top Gear host Clarkson, 62, who shocked readers after wishing Markle be "paraded naked through the streets" while having "lumps of excrement" thrown at her.
Clarkson wrote in his column for The Sun: "I actually feel rather sorry for [Harry] because today he’s just a glove puppet with no more control over what he says or does than Basil Brush.
"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.
"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."
He added that "everyone" of his generation "thinks the same way".
Unsurprisingly, many people were horrified by the comments, recalling that Markle had previously spoken out about feeling suicidal from the abuse she had received in the past.
They commented: "Unfortunately, I’ve just seen some of Jeremy Clarkson’s column regarding Meghan Markle, published in The Sun. What a pathetic little man he is. I’m astonished that a national newspaper deemed it fit to print such vile misogyny. I hope there are repercussions."
Others commented: "Jeremy Clarkson has just proved that Meghan Markle hasn't been imagining a smear campaign against her. He's just blown the lid off the level of hate she's been up against. Conclusive now."
Another added: "Jeremy Clarkson has 2 daughters. I wonder how he would feel if someone said the vile things he said about Meghan to them, via a National Newspaper."
His own daughter, Emily Clarkson, also took to social media to distance herself from her father's comments, adding on her Instagram story: "My views are and have always been clear when it comes to misogyny, bullying, and the treatment of women by the media.
"I want to make it very clear that I stand against everything that my dad wrote about Meghan Markle and I remain standing in support of those that are targeted with online hatred."
Just days earlier, Emily had shared her thoughts on the way the tabloid press had treated Meghan and Harry, sharing a headline from the Daily Mail and telling her followers: "This publication, and many like it, are hellbent on DESTROYING this woman.
"Love her or hate her, (or like me feel a large amount of ambivalence towards someone who I don’t know and who’s actions barely affect me), the rhetoric around her ought to scare you. I don’t wanna hear loads of comments justifying this, trying to prove to me that she is bad or toxic or deserving of this… to my mind, no one deserves this. It is inhumane."
She explained that her defense of Harry and Meghan comes from the "appalling" treatment she has witnessed them receive, adding: "I genuinely feel concern for anyone who can look at how she particularly has been written/joked/spoken about and feel that it's justified. It's bullying on a mass scale and it drove a new mother to want to end her life."
Emily admitted she felt a "DEEP discomfort with our lack of humanity towards these two people" and felt that it was their right to have their say on matters, especially considering the hundreds of thousands of global articles written about them over the years.
Harry and Meghan is available to stream on Netflix now.
.png_EQqK4P?tr=h-40&config=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)
.png_EQqK4P?tr=h-184&config=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)
