Good Morning Britain viewers were left frustrated during the latest live broadcast, with many issuing complaints over what they described as 'uncalled for' and 'anti-Scottish' comments from the presenters.
Bank Holiday Debate Sparks Controversy
Presenters Susanna Reid and Ed Balls were back in the ITV studio discussing the day's biggest stories, joined by regular contributors Gillian Keegan and the Mirror's Kevin Maguire. The debate centred on King Charles's decision to grant a one-off bank holiday in Scotland so football supporters could watch Scotland's opening World Cup match against Haiti.
Susanna explained the situation: 'A lot of people are outraged this morning over the bank holiday in Scotland for their first World Cup opening game. King Charles has approved a new, one-off bank holiday to allow fans to watch the late-night World Cup clash. So, they get next Monday off.'
Ed then added: 'This morning, in our five o'clock meeting, Susanna said, "I can't believe this, the game's on the Sunday morning, and they get bank holiday more than 24 hours later." I said, "What?" I couldn't believe it. It never occurred to me that that was going on.'
Presenter Comments Draw Criticism
The fixture in question is against Haiti at the Gilette Stadium in Boston, with kick-off scheduled for 9pm local time. Supporters are expected to stay up until 2am UK time to watch the start of the match. Susanna read out a selection of divided viewer comments before remarking: 'It's really outrageous. I mean, how long does it take Scots to get over the fact that they've played their first match?'
Kevin chimed in: 'It's 2am. You can go to bed late Sunday morning and sleep it off!' while Gillian observed: 'It sets a terrible precedent.' Ed then questioned: 'How hungover do they get?' Susanna responded: 'Is that the unspoken acknowledgement is that it is about alcohol?' to which Kevin replied: 'Yeah, I think it's going to be shown in thousands of pubs in Scotland at 2am. You can imagine the state of people.'
Viewers React Strongly
The presenters' remarks failed to go down well with audiences, with many taking to X (formerly Twitter) to voice their displeasure. One viewer wrote: 'Very condescending attitude from all the presenters taking part in that debate! Extremely anti-Scottish. Not everyone is getting it and not everyone wants it. I don't even like football but thought your comments were uncalled for!'
Another posted: 'I thought the presenters also focused heavily on stereotypes, portraying Scots as heavy drinkers. Do better Good Morning Britain. Your presenters owe some of your audience an apology.'
A third commented: 'The presenters talking about Scots was unacceptable. Very condescending attitude, extremely anti-Scottish comments. Uncalled for.' Another noted: 'Not everyone in Scotland gets it either,' while a fifth fumed: 'It's disappointing that your programme is again taking an anti-Scottish view.'
Good Morning Britain airs weekdays on ITV1 and ITVX at 6am.
