Piers Morgan has surprisingly nice comeback after Tucker Carlson slur-gate
Piers Morgan refused to stoop to Tucker Carlson’s level during the exchange. (Chip Somodevilla/Jeff Spicer/Getty Images)
Piers Morgan refused to stoop to Tucker Carlson's level during the exchange. (Chip Somodevilla/Jeff Spicer/Getty Images)
Piers Morgan has tweeted a surprisingly kind comeback after Tucker Carlson sparked outrage for encouraging him to use an anti-LGBTQ+ slur on his show.
On Thursday (27 November), the presenter sat down with the former Fox News host, who repeatedly pressured him to say the F-slur.
Footage from the interview has gone viral online, prompting Morgan to respond to an X user who claimed his refusal to say the slur reflected the “state of free speech in the UK in 2025”.
“You’re not free if the host of Britain’s biggest talk show won’t say a word because he’s terrified of being cancelled or investigated,” the post partly read.
‘It’s an offensive derogatory slur’
Morgan responded to the post with a surprisingly kind comeback, he wrote: “This clip has been wrongly interpreted… as I told Tucker, I wouldn’t say it because I think it’s an offensive derogatory slur against gay people, not because I was too scared in case someone arrested me… I wouldn’t say the N-word for the same reason.”
During the conversation, Carlson, who is known to be anti-LGBTQ+, explained that a viewer had been beaten up by someone they had referred to as the f-slur.
He said: “You’re allowed to be homophobic if you want in a free country, you can have any view you want. But no, because she used the word ‘f*****’ she’s arrested and the guy who punched her in the face is not. That story tells you everything.”
Morgan explained he hadn’t heard about the story, but noted if it was how Carlson told it then “obviously it’s ridiculous”.
Carlson asked whether Morgan would say the homophobic F-slur on camera, to which he quickly responded: “No.”
Morgan explained: “My issue with the whole trans debate, for example, is you don’t need to slide into actually saying derogatory stuff about trans people to make the point that women’s rights should be protected.
“So I don’t believe in needlessly sneering or insulting anybody.”
He then asked Carlson back if he would “use that word”, to which Carlson effortlessly replied, repeating the slur multiple times.
Morgan’s stance in support of the community contrasts with his usual unprompted and negative commentary on LGBTQ+ topics. He previously criticised Kew Gardens’ Queer Nature After Hours event, asking “why can’t we just have straight plants”.
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