Miriam Margolyes has tackled the backlash over her ‘racism row’ with Andi Peters on ITV’s This Morning.
The outspoken actress, 85, used an offensive term to describe ITV presenter Andi’s skin color during an appearance on This Morning on Thursday.
ITV bosses were forced to intervene after she called Andi ‘high yalla’. The clip, which was removed from the ITVX recording of the show, has since gone viral, with many viewers taking to Twitter to express their outrage at Miriam’s comments.
Miriam was asked about the incident on Sunday at a public event to promote her new memoir, Miriam’s Full English, at Cliffs Pavilion in Southend.
In videos shared by onlookers on social media, she stressed in response: “I didn’t want to embarrass or hurt Andi because he seems very nice.”
‘I’d never met him before; I didn’t know who he was and I didn’t know he was black until I saw him. When you see someone, of course you know he is black.
Miriam Margolyes has addressed the backlash over her ‘racism row’ with Andi Peters on ITV’s This Morning
“I wanted to know what he thought about it, because that interests me.”
Miriam then used an insulting term for people with disabilities as she continued, “How do black people feel? How do brown people feel? How do cripples feel? How do fat people feel?’
‘See what I mean? We all feel something about who we are and how people see us, what they think of us.’
The presenter intervened to clarify that “in other words, you wanted to discuss his identity with him,” to which the actress fully agreed.
“I’m fascinated by other people,” she continued. ‘It’s the people that interest me, not so much the celebrities. It’s everyone. What their story is, what made them who they are, why you are the way you are.’
Miriam appeared on This Morning to promote her book but ITV bosses were forced to intervene after she called Andi ‘high yalla’.
The term, which can also be spelled “high yaller” or “high yellow,” is an outdated and offensive term used in the US to describe a light-skinned black person.
Miriam added that she “welcomes everyone” and that her book is about inclusivity, but viewers on X accused her of being racist after the awkward conversation.
After first imitating Christine Lampard’s Northern Irish accent, Miriam turned to Andi and asked, “But what accent would be normal for you?”
The outspoken actress, 85, used an offensive term to describe ITV presenter Andi’s skin color during an appearance on This Morning on Thursday
‘This is normal. This is what I am,” Andi replied, while Miriam continued, “Oh, you guys are a mix, aren’t you? You have a black daddy and a white mommy.”
‘No, no, no. My parents are both black,” Andi confirmed, before joking: “What did they do to me, am I lighter than normal?”
Miriam continued: “Both parents I think are what I would call a ‘high yalla’. That’s what they call it in America. Oh, if someone isn’t deeply black, right?’
“I didn’t even know there were shades,” Andi said, while Miriam added, “There are shades.”
Concerned about the direction of the conversation, producers reportedly alerted Andi through his earpiece, then said out loud, “Oh, okay. They’re getting nervous now. They’re getting nervous now.’
‘Don’t be nervous,’ Miriam reassured, ‘we welcome everyone. That’s what I want to write about in my book. It’s about inclusion.’
The exchange has since been removed from the ITVX version of the interview. The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for both ITV and Miriam for comment.
One outraged commentator wrote on social media: ‘Miriam Margolyes sounds like a typical racist here. It’s very uncomfortable to watch.’
Another wrote: “Your parents are both black? I think you’re very yellow – that’s what they call it in America!’ Well, if you live on a plantation in 1845.
‘We don’t actually call it that anymore, because it’s super racist’; ‘Imagine being called a slur that hasn’t been heard in English for a hundred years’;
‘I assure you this is not what we call it in America’; ‘No filter, not really a funny woman. Why do we still have her on TV?’
‘This is not everyday racism. It’s 19th century American racism.”
However, others wrote: ‘What’s racist about that?’; ‘Ignorance perhaps, but this is not racism’.
Andi has responded to the ‘racism row’ by saying he has to ‘be prepared for anything’ after his friend and fellow journalist Jeremy Vine responded to the incident.
Jeremy weighed in when he reshared the clip, calling Miriam’s comments “seriously unnerving.”
Jeremy praised how Andi handled the interaction while live on air, writing, “This is seriously nerve-wracking. No filter.
‘@andipeters handled it brilliantly, but beware: “they get nervous” [the producers]’.
Andi thanked Jeremy for his support and replied, “Thanks JV. As you know, we have to be prepared for anything!!!’
