The Sun has said it regrets the publication of a Jeremy Clarkson column about the Duchess of Sussex and is “sincerely sorry”.
Former Top Gear host, Clarkson, has been facing calls to be sacked this week after saying he 'hated' Meghan Markle resulting in him being criticised by MPs, readers and even his own daughter, Emily.
The article - which has since been taken down - has become the most complained about in history with more than 20,000 complaints to the Independent Press Standards Organisation.
In a statement on Friday night, bosses the newspaper said: "In last Saturday's Sun, Jeremy Clarkson wrote a comment article about the Duchess of Sussex. It provoked a strong response and led to a large number of complaints to IPSO, the independent press regulator.
"In a tweet earlier this week, Jeremy said he had made a 'clumsy reference to a scene in Game of Thrones', which had 'gone down badly with a great many people' and he was 'horrified to have caused so much hurt'.
"He also said he will be more careful in future. Columnists' opinions are their own, but as a publisher, we realise that with free expression comes responsibility.
"We at The Sun regret the publication of this article and we are sincerely sorry. The article has been removed from our website and archives.
"The Sun has a proud history of campaigning, from Help for Heroes to Jabs Army and Who Cares Wins, and over 50 years of working in partnership with charities, our campaigns have helped change Britain for the better.
"Working with our readers, The Sun has helped to bring about new legislation on domestic abuse, provided beds in refuges, closed harmful loopholes in the law and empowered survivors of abuse to come forward and seek help.
"We will continue to campaign for good causes on behalf of our readers in 2023."
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