Scots on social media have hit back at Piers Morgan after he dismissed artist and author Darren McGarvey as a “raging lunatic”.

Morgan made the comment on Twitter as he watched Mr McGarvey’s appearance on Question Time last night. On the show, Mr McGarvey emphasised the toll that coronavirus was taking on working class communities.

But the 55-year-old Good Morning Britain presenter asked followers on Twitter “Who IS this raging lunatic?” alongside a screenshot of the rapper speaking on the current affairs show.

Later, Mr Morgan hit out at Question Time again, calling Thursday’s episode “an absolute shocker”, and moaned that the panel included “a ranting Scottish rapper” as well as “Ruby Wax plugging her business”.

In response, McGarvey, who performs under the name Loki, tweeted: “Question Time, nominated for a second Orwell Prize and pissed off Ruby Wax and @piersmorgan all in one day,” quipping, “Still got it”.

@survive_orr told him “Always appreciate your perspective and depth of thought - refreshing on that programme.”

But some users backed Morgan up, like @gordonnay, who told the former Daily Mirror editor “I apologise on behalf of Scotland he is a lunatic and usually reserved for our social affairs shows, seems bbc were scraping the barrel for panelists.”

Piers Morgan and Darren McGarvey have clashed on social media.

@mcarrier3 called Mr McGarvey’s accent “impenetrable” and labelled his contributions to the show “barely comprehensible”.

Others, however, said Piers Morgan was ignorant.

Elliot Smith, a British reporter at CNBC tweeted that the negative reaction to McGarvey’s appearance on the show had exposed an “ancient trend of dismissing folks with working class regional accents, no matter how insightful their experience is in understanding our country, as unqualified to comment.”

@food_glasgow told him that the 36-year-old was the “winner of the 2018 Orwell Prize” for his book Poverty Safari, adding “perhaps you should read a book or two”.

@lolmccoll wrote that it was a “shame so many have not encountered” Mr McGarvey and his work, calling him “a very strong voice for the often forgotten members of society.”

@brand_project agreed, saying he thought it was “a fabulous appearance.”

After facing the backlash, Mr Morgan took to Twitter today to walk back some of his comments.

“I may have been a little harsh on you, apologies”, he told McGarvey, “Many people have told me to read your prize-winning book to better acquaint myself with your work.

“So I will,” he added.

“Much appreciated,” McGarvey replied.

A message from the Editor

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to scotsman.com and enjoy unlimited access to Scottish news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit https://www.scotsman.com/subscriptions now to sign up.

Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.

Frank O'Donnell

Editorial Director

Scots hit back after Piers Morgan brands Darren McGarvey a ‘ranting Scottish rapper’

Comments