Good Morning Britain was the subject of 354 complaints to media regulator Ofcom after remarks made by studio guests about the murder of US right‑wing activist Charlie Kirk, who was shot dead while speaking at Utah Valley University on September 10, 2025.
The episode, broadcast the morning after the shooting and hosted by Kate Garraway and Ed Balls, featured writer Nels Abbey and former UK cabinet minister Michael Gove discussing the killing and Kirk's public profile. Some viewers told Ofcom the remarks were "utterly sickening."
Gove described Kirk on air as "a sort of Cicero for the TikTok age," saying he deliberately sought debate on campuses and elsewhere to spread his message. Abbey offered a sharper assessment, saying he viewed Kirk as "a David Duke for the TikTok age," and called him "quite clearly and comfortably a supremacist." Abbey also said he did not seek to justify the killing and that "political violence is wrong at home, it's wrong abroad," adding that he despised "guns and gun violence."
The programme segment and the subsequent complaints reflect a contentious public response to the killing and to how media discuss polarising figures. Kirk, 31, a prominent conservative activist and founder of a US political organisation, was fatally shot while delivering a speech on the Utah campus. Broadcasters in the UK and US covered the incident and its aftermath amid debates about political rhetoric, campus speech and security.
Separately, ITV personality Anne Hegerty drew criticism on social media for comments she made about Kirk. Hegerty, known as a quizmaster on the ITV programme The Chase, said she had not heard of Kirk before the killing and wrote on social media that, if they had met, she would have objected to some of his remarks. She added that she joined US Senator Bernie Sanders "in deploring his murder." Some commenters called her observations "misinformed," and Hegerty engaged in debate with critics on her platform.
ITV and Good Morning Britain did not immediately provide further comment on the complaints. Ofcom, the UK broadcasting regulator, typically acknowledges receipt of complaints and assesses whether a programme may have breached broadcasting codes; it has not announced a decision in this matter.
The complaints come amid heightened scrutiny of how mainstream and social media frame political figures and the language used in discussing contentious public personalities. Broadcasters face regulatory obligations under UK codes to ensure due impartiality on matters of political controversy and to avoid material likely to incite violence or hatred.
Good Morning Britain airs on ITV1 on weekday mornings and is available to stream on ITVX. The network carried live and recorded coverage across recent days following the shooting, as outlets in both countries reported reactions from politicians, commentators and members of the public.