Good Morning Britain star Susanna Reid has responded to backlash over comments she made about the World Cup which left some viewers unimpressed.
Comments Spark Outrage
With the football event currently in full swing, last week saw Susanna and her co-host Ed Balls breaking down the major talking points about the competition. Held every four years, this World Cup is being hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.
One thing which left the pair bemused was Scotland having a bank holiday to mark their first time being in the competition since 1998. Ed said: "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."
Susanna added: "It's really outrageous. I mean, how long does it take Scots to get over the fact that they've played their first match?"
The clip of Susanna's comments went viral on social media, with some Scottish viewers feeling it was in bad taste towards their football heroes. Scotland went on to beat Haiti 1-0 in the early hours of Sunday morning (June 14).
On-Air Apology
Returning to Good Morning Britain on Monday (June 15), the day that's a bank holiday in Scotland, Ed and Susanna had their say on the drama. Susanna said: "They're irate with us because we teased Scotland about having a bank holiday today, celebrating their first World Cup victory in 36 years. Huge celebrations this weekend likely to continue. There is that extra bank holiday but of course not everyone in Scotland gets it."
Ed added: "And that's a decision that one of our very own presenters might have called out outrageous, but according to one Scottish broadcaster, she is just jealous." He continued while gesturing towards Susanna: "When I say she is just jealous."
From here, a clip was played of Scottish presenter Nicolle Cassels claiming Susanna was 'jealous' and to 'enjoy working Monday'. She stated: "I know you're going to be there. I will not be there, because I'll be here on my bank holiday."
In the end it turned out that Nicolle didn't get the day off after all, with Susanna telling her live on air that she was 'so sorry'. Nicolle replied: "Susanna I knew you were jealous, but I didn't know you were jealous enough to bring me to work with you!"
Joy in Scotland
Describing the joy in Scotland, Nicolle said: "The atmosphere everywhere has been amazing, we've got Scotland flags everywhere, I was at a concert last night, they had the bagpipes out at Murrayfield. We actually all sang the national anthem, I've never sang the national anthem at Murrayfield before, I feel like the whole country is absolutely buzzing, something I've never experienced before and it's brilliant."
Also poking fun at Susanna and Ed was journalist Gordon Smart, who chimed: "My Good Morning Britain career is kind of like Scotland's career, I turn up every two years, do a good job and then disappear because the manager doesn't like me."
Trying to get past the drama, Susanna concluded: "That feels like a dig. I'm so sorry we've dragged you [Nicolle] in… My Scottish ancestors would be turning in their graves, I can only apologise. Let me say, it's outrageous that not everyone in Scotland has got today off as a bank holiday."
