A social media campaign calling for Piers Morgan to be reinstated as a Good Morning Britain host hit an unexpected road block after the hashtag was flooded with pictures of actual piers.
The outspoken media personality quit GMB on Tuesday amid a row over comments he made about Meghan Markle.
He stormed off the set of the news programme following a heated discussion with his colleague, Alex Beresford, about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s TV interview with Oprah Winfrey.
A statement from ITV said: “Following discussions with ITV, Piers Morgan has decided now is the time to leave Good Morning Britain. ITV has accepted this decision and has nothing further to add.”
But many people have been sad to see the back of Morgan, with the hashtag #BringBackPiers making the rounds on social media last night.
Hundreds of the 55-year-old’s fans posted his picture and pleading that he return to the show.
Kelvin Mackenzie, who formerly edited the Sun newspaper joined in and said: “So sad that hugely talented @piersmorgan has told ITV to shove their job and walked out on GMB in the wake of his spectacular rants about Meghan.
“Love to see the ratings and the ad dollars with Alex Beresford running the show. It’s now dead.#BringBackPiers.”
#bringbackpiers
— ?? ??????? Quarantine Quiz book out now! (@JFQuizzes) March 10, 2021
Couldn’t agree more with this hashtag. Amenities, entertainment and a hub for communities and tourists. Every seaside town needs one. pic.twitter.com/SBB78uAGKh
But some could not resist the opportunity to make a joke out the hashtag and flooded its timeline with pictures of their favourite seaside monuments.
“Imagining @piersmorgan waking up to see #bringbackpiers is trending and then realising it’s just pictures of actual piers,” one user wrote.
#bringbackpiers is trending and I’m happy that we’re #piersposting . Take this one in Galway for example, gorgeous. pic.twitter.com/EupwM3O4x7
— CATW Blog + Podcast (@CATWBlog) March 10, 2021
Another twitter user said: “Penarth Pier is one of my favourite places. I don’t go there very often nowadays, but it always reminds me of day trips with my grandparents. #bringbackpiers.’
Alongside a photo of the Bournemouth attraction, one man said “Support Local Piers,” while using the now popular hashtag.
brighton palace pier, what a lovely place ? #bringbackpiers pic.twitter.com/9LZN0PFi7K
— hannah 🙂 (@hannahxxwood) March 10, 2021
we should definitely #bringbackpiers – for fun, fishing, and fresh air pic.twitter.com/u3cUqT6O01
— The Failed Anarchist Revival (@failedanarchist) March 10, 2021
Related: PMQs – Meghan was an actor but PM is bringing ‘Boris Billions’ movie to life