Jeremy Clarkson’s Meghan Markle Column Faces U.K. Press Regulator Probe After 25,000 Complaints

The U.K. press watchdog has launched an investigation into a British tabloid column by former Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson that attracted around 25,100 complaints.

On Thursday, the Independent Press Standards Organization confirmed it will probe the Dec. 17, 2022 article in The Sun where Clarkson wrote that Prince Harry was being “controlled” by Meghan Markle, and he was “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.”

The press watchdog will take forward complaints from two parties, The Fawcett Society and The Wilde Foundation, who said they were impacted by breaches of the UK Editor’s Code over accuracy, harassment and discrimination via the column.

“We will make public the outcome of this investigation through our website and on our social media channels when it is concluded,” the press watchdog said in a statement.

Clarkson wrote the opinion piece under the headline “One day, Harold the glove puppet will tell the truth about A Woman Talking B*****ks” after the Harry & Meghan docuseries launched on Netflix. The series sees the couple revealing new behind-the-scenes information about how they were treated by both the U.K. press and royal family, ultimately leading to their separation from royal life.

Clarkson’s tabloid column was removed from The Sun‘s website after it sparked a widespread backlash, including from Clarkson’s daughter, podcast host Emily Clarkson, who said, “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.”