Miriam Margolyes had some strong words for Boris Johnson and his government during an appearance on Thursday’s Good Morning Britain.
The actor is known for never holding anything back during her TV interviews, which was certainly the case when Ben Shephard and Susanna Reid spoke to her via video-link from her home in Tuscany.
When the hosts asked whether she’ll have the Covid-19 vaccine upon arriving back in the UK, Miriam insisted: “Of course one must have the vaccine, those anti-vaxxers are nuts. They need their heads seen to. It’s ridiculous.
“No, I’m hoping I get a vaccine as soon as possible. I’m 79, so I’m not quite 80 yet, I’ll be 80 in May. And I may be able to have it in Italy before I come [back to the UK].
“But I’m not going to England until it’s safe to go. I mean, you’ve got that clown in charge there, that I didn’t vote for, and I’m holding him responsible for a lot of this mess.”
Miriam was also asked about the news that Donald Trump had been impeached for the second time, to which she had an equally colourful reaction.
She said: “I know it’s morning television, and I have to be careful about what I say about that man. Let’s say that it ends with ‘hole’ and starts with ‘a’. But he is a dangerous man.
“He is dangerous, I think he’s a fascist, and I think it was obvious from the beginning that he was going to be like that... I just long to see the back of him.”
Miriam made headlines after the prime minister caught Covid-19 last year, admitting she’d had “difficulty not wanting him to die”, as a result of how his government has handled the pandemic.
“It’s a disgrace, it’s a scandal,” she told Channel 4’s The Last Leg. “I had difficulty not wanting Boris Johnson to die. I wanted him to die. Then I thought that will reflect badly on me and I don’t want to be the sort of person that wants people to die.
“So then I wanted him to get better, which he did do, he did get better. But he didn’t get better as a human being. And I really would prefer that.”
Ofcom received almost 500 complaints about Miriam’s comments, with a spokesperson for the TV watchdog later saying: “These provocative comments had clear potential to offend viewers, but we also considered the audience’s likely expectations of Miriam Margolyes, a comic actor known for her forthright views, and of this live, late-night satirical comedy show.
“We also took into account that Ms Margolyes immediately qualified her comments, and viewers were warned in advance about the programme’s adult humour.”
Months after the controversy, the former Harry Potter star said: “I can’t regret telling the truth. Daddy always said you must have a golden reputation, you must never do anything wrong and I don’t do anything wrong, in my view. I always try and do the right thing.”
Good Morning Britain airs every weekday from 6am on ITV.