Emily Clarkson: who is Jeremy Clarkson daughter, Instagram statement explained - reply to Meghan Markle column

Jeremy Clarkson caused widespread uproar after The Sun published a controversial column in which he described his hatred of Meghan Markle. Readers slammed the former Top Gear presenter after he said in the piece that he dreamed of Markle walking through the streets naked while members of the public threw excrement at her.

The Sun has received thousands of complaints against the column. Some critics have condemned the vitriolic language used by Clarkson, with comic John Bishop saying on Twitter that Clarkson’s sentiment was “a blatant appeal to incite humiliation and violence on a woman”.

Clarkson revealed on 16 January that he had written to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle on Christmas morning to apologise for the “disgraceful” use of language in his column. He added that he had “forgotten to mention” the Game Of Thrones reference he was making when he described his dream of Meghan Markle being paraded naked throughout the streets while abuse and excrement was thrown at her.

While Clarkson has now addressed the situation, the first member of his family to address the situation was his daughter, Emily Clarkson. She took to Instagram to provide her followers with a response to her father’s column.

In her statement, she made clear to her followers that she did not agree with the presenter’s views. Emily added: ‘I remain standing in support of those that are targeted with online hatred.”

But who is Emily Clarkson - and what did her full statement say? Here’s everything you need to know.

Who is Emily Clarkson?

Emily Clarkson is a 28-year-old podcast host. She hosts the ‘Should I Delete That’ podcast, which focuses on social media issues and online bullying, alongside body confidence influencer Alex Light.

She is the daughter of Clarkson and his ex-wife Frances Cain. She has two siblings - Finlo and Katya Clarkson.

Emily is also an established author. She has written two books, ‘Dear Pretty Normal me’ and ‘Can I speak to Someone In Charge’, both of which focus on topics such as body image and social media’s impact. She has also launched Have A Gos, a support group for women to encourage them to participate in sporting events.

She is married to Irish publicist Alex Andrew. The couple are expecting their first child together.

What did Emily Clarkson say about Jeremy Clarkson’s Meghan Markle column?

Her father’s column was first published in The Sun on Friday 18 December. Emily posted a statement on Instagram two days later in which she distanced herself from Clarkson’s sentiment.

She told her 280,000 followers: “My views are and have always been clear when it comes to misogyny, bullying and the treatment of women by the media. I want to make it very clear that I stand against everything that my dad wrote about Meghan Markle and I remain standing in support of those that are targeted with online hatred.”

Clarkson’s column came after the release of Harry & Meghan, a biographic docu-series on Netflix. In the documentary, the couple described the criticism and scrutiny from the British media which had a profound impact on their relationship and life.

Upon the release of the series, Emily denounced the coverage of the former Duchess by the Daily Mail and MailOnline. She said: “This publication, and many like it, are hellbent on DESTROYING this woman.”

What did Jeremy Clarkson say about Meghan Markle?

Controversy was sparked following Clarkson’s column against Meghan. In the opinion piece, he said: “I hate her. Not like I hate Nicola Sturgeon or Rose West. I hate her on a cellular level.”

Upon saying that “everyone” his age “thinks the same way”, he said: “At night, I’m unable to sleep as I lie there, grinding my teeth and dreaming of the day when she is made to parade naked through the streets of every town in Britain while the crowds chant ‘Shame!’ and thrown lumps of excrement at her.”

His comments were widely condemned. More than 6,000 complaints were made to media regulator Ipso over the column, and The Sun has now removed the story from its website after Clarkson addressed the situation on Twitter.

He said: “Oh dear. I’ve rather put my foot in it. In a column I wrote about Meghan, I made a clumsy reference to a scene in Game of Thrones and this has gone down badly with a great many people. I’m horrified to have caused so much hurt and I shall be more careful in future.”