Alex Beresford, the weather presenter of Good Morning Britain, has finally broken his silence following his on-air clash with former host Piers Morgan, who announced he was quitting the breakfast show a day later.
On Thursday, Beresford released a statement on Twitter addressing Tuesday's clash, during which he accused Morgan of "diabolical behaviour" towards Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex - an accusation that prompted Morgan to storm off the set.
Morgan has long been an outspoken critic of Markle, and has particularly rebuked her tell-all, bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey, during which she accused the Royal Family of racism and failing to offer her adequate support. He also questioned the authenticity of her claim that Buckingham Palace refused her help while she was suffering suicidal thoughts, his comments garnering more than 41,000 complaints from the public.
In his statement, Beresford said it was not Morgan's departure he was hoping for, and went on to wish him well for the future.
"Piers and I have had a lively, cheeky on-air relationship. We both wanted to be on the show Tuesday morning, and from our very public conversations on Twitter, we both knew how strongly our opinions differed on the treatment of Harry and Meghan," Beresford said.
After Beresford's accusations, Morgan stormed off the set, claiming he was "done with this".
His subsequent resignation has sparked outrage online, with a collective group of more than 170,000 people signing a petition online to "Bring Back Piers Morgan!'
Morgan has also spoken out on the matter, claiming he had one goal when joining the show - "to beat BBC Breakfast in the ratings".
He went on to say, "on my last day, we did it".
The 55-year-old also admitted on Twitter that despite some of his colleagues not agreeing with him, and some not even liking him, "we were a team, and we won".
The show's network ITV is also feeling the effects of Morgan's departure, their shares sent plummeting by 4.3 percent the day after, according to The Guardian.
With Morgan's broadcasting career stretching more than 30 years, 40-year-old Beresford also thanked Morgan in the statement.
"Piers has always supported my growth. He's given me advice on several occasions and for that I am grateful".
The controversial host began working on the breakfast show in 2015, with Beresford joining the desk as a guest presenter in October last year.
