‘I’d like to go on the record and say I don’t agree with him.’
James May has labelled Jeremy Clarkson’s controversial Meghan Markle column as “too creepy”, admitting that he “wouldn’t have written that.”
May was appearing on Radio 4’s Today programme to discuss his views on potential 20mph speed limits coming into force.
Near the end of the interview though, he was asked by host Martha Kearney for his thoughts about the Sun column his Grand Tour colleague had written about the Duchess of Sussex in December.
Clarkson caused a torrent of outrage with the column, in which he stated that he “hated” the Duchess of Sussex on a “cellular level”, disliked her more than murderer Rose West, and that he was “dreaming of the day” when she is “made to parade naked through the streets of every town in Britain while crowds chant, ‘Shame!’ and throw lumps of excrement at her”.
When asked by Kearney about the column, May admitted he hadn’t read it as he had been away at the time. So Kearney proceeded to read out extracts of the column to him.
The former Top Gear host labelled the article “too creepy” and disagree with Clarkson’s claim in the column that all people of his age “think the same way” about Markle.
He said: “Well I think he [Clarkson] did say something like ‘All people my age think the same way.’
“Well I’d like to go on record and say I don’t, and I’m only a few years younger than him.”
Asked if he condemned Clarkson’s article, May responded: “I wouldn’t have written that. I think it sounds a little bit too creepy.”
But he did go on to say that he is “very much in favour of free speech and allowing the ‘haters to hate’ so we can see what they have to say.”
And he went on to assure fans that The Grand Tour was not under threat as a result of Clarkson’s words.
"I wouldn't have written that, I think it sounds a little bit too creepy"
James May, presenter of The Grand Tour, tells @MarthaKearney that the Amazon show isn't under threat because of Jeremy Clarkson's column about Meghan Marklehttps://t.co/j5I7KCrJqV | #R4Today pic.twitter.com/J9gnKfxXCX
— BBC Radio 4 Today (@BBCr4today) January 30, 2023
Clarkson’s column sparked a huge backlash at the time, with celebrities such as Carol Vorderman and John Bishop, and even his own daughter, quick to condemn Clarkson’s words.
The article became the most complained about column ever, with the Sun eventually removing it and apologising.
Earlier this month, Clarkson posted a lengthy apology on his Instagram account, revealing that he emailed Markle and her husband Prince Harry on Christmas Day to apologise for his language in the column, which he described as “disgraceful.”
He said he was “profoundly sorry”, and that he had written the piece “in a hurry” and just “pressed send.”
But, responding to his apologetic statement, the couple said Clarkson had only addressed his letter to Harry.
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