Piers Morgan

Some Lesser Known Facts About Piers Morgan

• His family shifted to Newick, East Sussex, a few months after his birth.

• When Piers Morgan was eleven months old, his father passed away.

• He later adopted his stepfather’s last name after his mother got married to Glynne Pughe-Morgan.

  

• In 1985, he began working for the Surrey and South London Newspaper Group after graduating from high school.

• In 1988, Piers Morgan started working as a freelancer for The Sun newspaper.

• He once claimed that Kelvin MacKenzie, editor of The Sun, personally invited him to contribute to and write for the ‘Bizarre’ showbiz column.

• Piers Morgan then started working as the column’s primary writer and was often pictured with famous people.

• Once, during a media conversation, he said that people started calling him the ‘Friend of the Stars’ because he was often seen in photos with famous people like Madonna, Stallone, David Bowie, and Paul McCartney.

  

• In January 1994, Piers Morgan was appointed as the editor of the News of the World by Rupert Murdoch.

• Initially, he worked as the acting editor, but he was given a permanent position later.

• At the age of 29, Piers Morgan became the youngest editor of a national newspaper in over 50 years.

• The newspaper produced various exclusive stories during his tenure as editor.

• In 1995, Piers Morgan quit his job after releasing images of Charles Earl Spencer’s wife, Catherine Victoria Lockwood, while leaving a Surrey addiction treatment facility.

• Reportedly, the editors’ code of conduct was violated by publishing those images.

  

• After that, he joined the Daily Mirror as editor.

• In his book The Insider, Piers Morgan mentioned that he left News of the World of his own choice.

  

• He liked former Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher during her time in power.

• On 25 June 1996, while working as editor of the Daily Mirror, Piers Morgan apologised on television for a headline that mocked Germany before the Euro ’96 semi-final against England. The headline said,
  

  Achtung Surrender! For You, Fritz Ze Euro Championship Is Over.”

  Piers Morgan said,

  It was meant as a joke, but if anyone took it seriously and was hurt, I’m sorry.”

• Germany won the match and later won the final at Wembley Stadium.

• Under his leadership, the Mirror spent £16 million on a rebrand. It removed ‘Daily’ from the name in 1997 (but later brought it back).

  

• In 1999, journalist Roy Greenslade claimed in the media that Piers Morgan’s leadership made a big positive impact. He praised his energy and focus.

• From 1999 to 2006, he appeared in the award show Pride of Britain Awards, which aired on ITV.

  

• In 2000, Piers Morgan was investigated for buying £20,000 worth of shares in Viglen before the Mirror’s column recommended the company.

• He has broken rules on financial journalism, but was allowed to keep his job.

• The column’s writers, Anil Bhoyrul and James Hipwell, broke more rules and were fired.

• In 2002, the Mirror tried to change its style to attract more readers and hired writer Christopher Hitchens; however, sales continued to drop.

• In 2003, Jeremy Clarkson threw water on Piers Morgan during Concorde’s last flight. He was angry over the photos the Mirror published.

• After that, during a media interview, he told singer Charlotte Church how journalists might listen to voicemails.

• The same year, he made a three-part documentary, The Importance of Being Famous, which aired on the BBC.

• In 2004, a government investigation cleared Piers Morgan of any charges.

• In 2004, Clarkson punched him at the British Press Awards during another argument.

  

• In May 2004, the court ruled in favour of model Naomi Campbell after the Mirror published a photo of her at a Narcotics clinic.

• Piers Morgan criticised the ruling and said that it helped celebrities hide their bad behaviour while enjoying media attention.

• On 14 May 2004, he was fired as editor of the Daily Mirror after refusing to say sorry to his boss, Sly Bailey.

• The Mirror once published photos that showed British soldiers abusing Iraqi prisoners. The images were later confirmed to be fake and were taken in North-West England.

• The newspaper printed a headline, ‘SORRY..WE WERE HOAXED,’ and admitted that a fake story tricked it. However, Piers Morgan refused to say that the photos were fake.

• He said that even if the pictures were not real, they still showed abuse similar to what was happening in Iraq.

  

• When Piers Morgan was the editor of the Daily Mirror, a man named Steven Nott informed the paper that voicemails could be hacked using PIN codes, but the story was never published.

• The same year, he co-hosted the show Morgan and Platell, which aired on Channel 4. He debated current issues from different political views on the show, but it was cancelled after three seasons.

• In 2005, Bhoyrul and Hipwell were found guilty of breaking the law. The trial revealed that Piers Morgan had bought £67,000 worth of shares in Viglen using his and his wife’s names.

• In 2006, he appeared as a judge on the singing reality show America’s Got Talent on NBC.

  

• In 2007, he appeared as a judge on the shows Comic Relief Does The Apprentice and Britain’s Got Talent. He then hosted the show You Can’t Fire Me, I’m Famous, which aired on BBC One.

• In 2008, Piers Morgan signed a £2 million-a-year deal with ITV to continue judging its shows and making documentaries.

• He then went on to make shows such as Piers Morgan on Sandbanks (2008) and Piers Morgan On… (2009) (visiting places like Dubai and Hollywood).

• In 2008, Piers Morgan participated in the show The Celebrity Apprentice and won. He defeated singer Trace Adkins and raised the most money among contestants.

  

• In 2009, he launched the show Piers Morgan’s Life Stories, where he interviewed many famous people, including Sharon Osbourne, Cheryl, and Gordon Brown.

  

• In 2011, MP Louise Mensch accused Piers Morgan of boasting about phone hacking but later apologised.

• After that, Blogger Paul Staines claimed that he conducted a 2002 story on Sven-Göran Eriksson, which was based on hacked messages.

• Piers Morgan stated during the 2011 Leveson Inquiry that he was unaware of phone hacking at the Mirror. He admitted that he had heard a voicemail from Paul McCartney to Heather Mills, but refused to reveal how.

• Heather Mills stated that she never shared such a message with him and granted access to her voicemails.

• Journalist Jeremy Paxman claimed that Piers Morgan once explained how voicemails could be accessed using default security codes.

• In 2011, he banned Hugh Grant from all his shows after Grant criticised the press. He called him a “tedious little man.”

• After that, Piers Morgan claimed Madonna’s team lied to him and that she had ignored him over the years.

• In 2012, Kelsey Grammer, an American actor and producer, walked out of his show after seeing a photo of his ex-wife.

• In 2013, Piers Morgan was investigated by the police for phone hacking during his time as the editor of the Daily Mirror.

• In 2014, Trinity Mirror admitted that some journalists had hacked phones and paid compensation. Most of the cases happened when he was the editor.

• The same year, Janet Mock criticised Piers Morgan for calling her ‘formerly a man.’ He said that her reaction was unfair, and they had a follow-up debate.

• In 2015, he joined the show Good Morning Britain as a guest host on ITV and became permanent later that year. He left the show in 2021 after a controversy involving Meghan and Harry.

  

• In 2015, Piers Morgan laughed on-air when a guest repeatedly used the word ‘fucking.’ Ofcom did not take action but said that his behaviour was concerning.

  

• From 2016 to 2017, he hosted the television shows Killer Women with Piers Morgan and Serial Killer with Piers Morgan on ITV.

• He predicted Donald Trump’s 2016 election win and called him a close friend. He said that he would not have voted for Trump (and could not as he was not a U.S. citizen).

• Piers Morgan interviewed Trump several times, including on Good Morning Britain (2016), Air Force One (2018), and in the Churchill War Rooms (2019).

  

• He said that he disagreed with Trump on gun control, climate change, abortion, and the Muslim travel ban.

• In 2016, Ofcom received 70 complaints after Piers Morgan questioned a Christian magistrate about gay marriage. People felt that he meant Christians dislike gay people.

• In 2017, He fought with comedian Jim Jefferies and later with author J.K. Rowling after defending Donald Trump on television.

• In 2017, Piers Morgan mocked a Women’s March and called the protesters ‘rabid feminists.’

• After that, actor Ewan McGregor cancelled his interview, and Morgan accused him of hypocrisy for supporting Roman Polanski.

• In 2018, he made a cameo appearance on the British television show Hollyoaks.

• In 2020, Piers Morgan criticised Trump’s COVID-19 response, especially the ‘disinfectant’ remark. After that, Trump unfollowed him on Twitter.

• In 2020, he called Prince Harry and Meghan ‘the two most spoiled brats in history’ and blamed Meghan for Harry leaving the royal family.

• In 2020, Piers Morgan mocked a Chinese advertisement by making fun of its language. He said, “ching chong ching milk.” Ofcom received over 1,000 complaints, and he was accused of racism.

  

• In 2021, after the January 6 Capitol riots, he called Trump ‘mentally unfit’ and stated that he regretted supporting him.

• In July 2021, Piers Morgan caught COVID-19 after attending the Euro 2020 final.

• On 16 September 2021, a news channel announced the launch of a new show called TalkTV in 2022, with Piers Morgan as the first major name to join.

• In 2022, Trump walked out of a new interview with him after being told that he lost the 2020 election. Trump called him ‘very dishonest.’

• On 25 April 2022, he started a show, Piers Morgan Uncensored, with the first two episodes featuring an interview with Donald Trump.

• The show’s viewership dropped by 80%, from 316,800 to 61,700 viewers, within a week.

  

• In 2023, Piers Morgan supported Ron DeSantis over Trump. He called Trump a ‘political suicide bomber.’ In response, Trump mocked both DeSantis and Morgan.

• In 2023, Prince Harry sued Mirror Group Newspapers and accused Morgan of knowing about phone hacking, including of Princess Diana’s phone.

• Piers Morgan was once a good friend of Meghan Markle, but he often says that she cut him off after meeting Prince Harry.

• Since then, he often criticises her and Prince Harry, calling them spoiled. He has accused Meghan of using Harry to climb socially.

• On the show Good Morning Britain, he once argued with Afua Hirsch, who said that the media was racist toward Meghan.

• After Meghan’s 2021 Oprah interview, where she spoke about suicidal thoughts and racism, Piers Morgan said that he did not believe her.

• However, his co-host, Alex Beresford, defended Meghan, which led to an argument, after which he left the set.

• Later that day, Piers Morgan quit the show.

• Meghan reportedly complained to the CEO of ITV, leading to a formal complaint to Ofcom. His remarks about her mental health generated over 57,000 complaints, the highest in Ofcom’s history.

• Ofcom ruled that ITV broke no rules but criticised Morgan’s disinterest in suicide. Morgan called the decision a win for free speech and mocked Meghan as ‘Princess Pinocchios.’

• Once, actor Steve Coogan accused him of bullying Meghan and being part of the problem with the British press.

• In November 2023, Piers Morgan publicly named Meghan and Harry, saying they had talked about their baby’s skin colour.

• When he left ITV, its stock price dropped nearly £200 million, and Good Morning Britain beat BBC Breakfast in ratings.

• He once insulted British writer A.A. Gill’s partner. He called her an ageing ‘sex kitten.’ Gill responded and labelled Morgan as someone who seeks attention.

• In December 2023, a judge ruled in Harry’s favour for phone hacking allegations and awarded him £140,600. The judge stated that Piers Morgan and others were aware that hacking was taking place.

• He denied involvement but was criticised for his response.

• He owns homes in East Sussex and Beverly Hills.

• Piers Morgan supports Arsenal Football Club and often criticises their former manager, Arsène Wenger.

• He once had a public dispute with Arsenal player Aaron Ramsey, who refused to shake hands with him.

• Piers Morgan has supported both the Conservative and Labour parties at different times.

• He has roots in Irish Catholicism, believes in an afterlife, and frequently discusses his faith. He does not attend Confession.

• In 2024, in the BBC miniseries Kidnapped: The Chloe Ayling Story, actor Robert Glenister portrayed Piers Morgan.

  

• He is a fitness enthusiast and goes to the gym regularly. He often shares pictures of his gym sessions on social media.

  

• Piers Morgan likes travelling to distant places in his free time.

  

• He is an animal lover and has a pet dog. He often shares pictures of his pet on social media.

  

• Piers Morgan enjoys smoking cigars occasionally.

  

• He is often spotted enjoying alcoholic beverages on various occasions.