Who is Piers Morgan? Everything you need to know

Piers Morgan ,appointed the editor of the tabloid The Sun in 1988, and later became the youngest editor of a British national newspaper in over half a century when he took charge of the News of the World at the age of 29 in 1994. He then edited the Daily Mirror from 1995 until his dismissal in 2004. Morgan has had a diverse career, including roles as a television presenter for shows such as Piers Morgan’s Life Stories and Piers Morgan Live, as well as being a judge on talent shows like America’s Got Talent and Britain’s Got Talent.

His career has been marked by controversy, particularly during the period when he was the editor of the Daily Mirror, which was implicated in the phone hacking scandal. While Morgan denied hacking phones himself, he faced criticism during the Leveson Inquiry. In a 2023 court case, it was found that he knew about private phone hacking and shared hacking methods.

Morgan’s outspoken views, especially during his time on Good Morning Britain, led to multiple Ofcom adjudications. His departure from the program in March 2021 followed his controversial comments about the Oprah with Meghan and Harry interview, resulting in a significant number of viewer complaints.

Early life and education

Piers Morgan, born in Reigate, Surrey on 30 March 1965, is the son of Vincent Eamonn O’Meara, an Irish dentist, and Gabrielle Georgina Sybille (née Oliver), who raised him as a Catholic. Following his father’s death when Morgan was 11 months old, his mother later married Glynne Pughe-Morgan, a Welsh pub landlord. After relocating to Newick, East Sussex, Morgan attended Cumnor House prep school, Chailey School, and Priory School, Lewes, for sixth form. His stepfather’s surname became his own. Morgan studied journalism at Harlow College after a brief period at Lloyd’s of London and started his career with the Surrey and South London Newspaper Group in 1985.

Personal life

Piers Morgan, initially married to Marion Shalloe in 1991, had three sons with her. They separated in 2004 and finalized their divorce in 2008. In June 2010, Morgan married journalist Celia Walden, daughter of former Conservative MP George Walden. He resides in Kensington, London, and owns properties in Newick, East Sussex, and Hollywood, Los Angeles.

A devoted Arsenal supporter, Morgan was a vocal critic of former manager Arsène Wenger. His political affiliations include identifying as a Conservative Party supporter in a 1994 interview. However, he expressed admiration for New Labour leader Tony Blair and voted for the Kensington Conservative candidate in the 2019 UK general election. Morgan has also voted for the Animal Welfare Party and the Labour Party at different times.

Morgan’s battle with COVID-19 was revealed on July 24, 2021, following the Euro 2020 final, despite being fully vaccinated. Of Irish Catholic descent, Morgan often speaks about his Catholic faith and belief in an afterlife, though he doesn’t go to Confession.

Television career

Piers Morgan’s television career expanded after leaving the Daily Mirror. He presented a BBC documentary series titled “The Importance of Being Famous” in 2003. Morgan chaired the panel for the Pride of Britain Awards on ITV from 1999 to 2006. He co-hosted a current affairs interview show on Channel 4 called “Morgan and Platell.” Morgan served as a judge on “America’s Got Talent” in 2006 and later on “Britain’s Got Talent” and “America’s Got Talent” in 2007.

In 2009, Morgan began hosting “Piers Morgan’s Life Stories” on ITV and embarked on a three-part series titled “Piers Morgan On…” In 2011, he replaced Larry King on CNN with “Piers Morgan Live,” which ended in 2014. Morgan guest-hosted and later became a permanent co-host on “Good Morning Britain” from 2015 to 2021. He interviewed female murderers on “Killer Women with Piers Morgan” and presented “Serial Killer with Piers Morgan” in 2016 and 2017, respectively. Morgan left “Good Morning Britain” in March 2021 following a controversy over his remarks about Oprah with Meghan and Harry.

Bibliography

Year	Title	Publisher	ISBN
1991	Secret Lives	Blake	0-905846-95-8
1991	Private Lives of the Stars	Angus and Robertson	0-207-16941-1
1992	To Dream a Dream: Amazing Life of Phillip Schofield	Blake	1-85782-006-1
1993	“Take That”: Our Story	Boxtree	1-85283-839-6
1994	“Take That”: On the Road	Boxtree	1-85283-396-3
2004	Va Va Voom!: A Year with Arsenal 2003–04	Methuen	0-413-77451-1
2005	The Insider: The Private Diaries of a Scandalous Decade	Ebury Press	0-09-190849-3
2007	Don’t You Know Who I Am?	Ebury Press	–
2009	God Bless America: Misadventures of a Big Mouth Brit	Ebury Press	978-0-09-191393-9
2013	Shooting Straight: Guns, Gays, God, and George Clooney	Gallery Books	978-1-4767-4505-3
2020	Wake Up: Why the World Has Gone Nuts	Harper Collins	978-0008392598

Press career

He started his career as a freelancer at The Sun in 1988, where he was personally recruited by Sun editor Kelvin MacKenzie to work on the “Bizarre” showbiz column. Despite not being a pop music fan, Morgan became known for self-publicity, regularly pictured with celebrities.

In 1994, at the age of 29, Morgan became the editor of the News of the World, appointed by Rupert Murdoch. During his time there, the newspaper achieved notable scoops under his leadership. However, he left in 1995 following controversy over publishing photographs of Catherine Victoria Lockwood, which violated the editors’ code of conduct.

Despite the incident, Morgan became the editor of the Daily Mirror in 1995, known for its support of the Labour Party. His departure from the News of the World was reportedly influenced by this controversy. Morgan’s autobiography, “The Insider,” claims he left the News of the World for the Mirror voluntarily. His unexpected appointment as editor of a Labour-supporting newspaper raised eyebrows given his previous admiration for Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.