Kate Garraway was forced to apologise to Good Morning Britain viewers after a passer-by made a “rude gesture” during a live broadcast. The presenter and her co-host Rob Rinder were interviewing City of Edinburgh Council leader Jane Meagher on Friday’s installment about Edinburgh’s new tourist levy.
The levy will add a 5 per cent charge to the cost of the first five nights spent in hotels, B&Bs, short-term lets and other visitor accommodation. The measure comes as the Scottish capital prepares to welcome hundreds of thousands of visitors for the Edinburgh festivals.
However, the interview was momentarily derailed when a man appeared in the background and made a reverse V-sign towards the camera. Garraway addressed the incident, telling viewers: “Just to say, Jane, you won’t be aware because you were talking so elegantly to us with the gorgeous vision of Edinburgh behind. But somebody came past doing a rather rude gesture. So, if you’re watching at home and you saw, that is no reflection on Jane or indeed Edinburgh.”
It is not the first mishap this week. Reform UK MP Robert Jenrick was overheard calling his interview with Ed Balls and Susanna Reid on Wednesday’s show “a waste of time”. Jenrick had appeared to discuss the scandal surrounding Reform leader Nigel Farage’s £5 million gift from Thailand-based billionaire Christopher Harborne.
After saying goodbye, he was heard on his mic saying: “That was a waste of time.” Balls clapped back: “I think it wasn’t a waste of time. Robert Jenrick gave us very clear answers on the police investigation; it’s not a waste of time for him to make clear that he believes there’s no police investigation.” Reid, who looked nonplussed, said they were “very grateful for his time”.
