THE Duchess of Sussex formally complained to ITV about Piers Morgan before the Good Morning Britain co-host quit, the PA news agency understands.
Morgan left the breakfast show after an on-air row with a colleague who criticised him for "continuing to trash" the duchess, after earlier this week saying he "didn't believe a word" of Meghan's Oprah Winfrey interview.
PA understands the duchess' concern was not about the personal attacks on the validity of her racism allegation made against the royal family, or her claims she was not supported by the institution when experiencing suicidal thoughts.
The complaint is understood to focus on how Morgan's comments may affect the issue of mental health generally and those attempting to deal with their own problems.
ITV bosses asked Morgan to apologise to the duchess, but he refused, the Telegraph reported.
Morgan criticised Meghan as he co-hosted Monday's GMB show, and after a clip aired of the duchess discussing her struggles with mental health and the monarchy's knowledge of them, he said: "I'm sorry, I don't believe a word she says".
Speaking yesterday Morgan said: "If I have to fall on my sword for expressing an honestly-held opinion about Meghan Markle and that diatribe of bilge that she came out with in that interview, so be it".
Meanwhile, an industry body for the UK press has said it will "work towards being part of the solution" after the group came under fire for its comments about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's accusations of racism and bigotry.
The Society Of Editors released a strongly-worded statement following Harry and Meghan's interview.
The organisation, which has almost 400 members in the UK, said it was "not acceptable" for the couple to make claims of racism in the press "without providing any supporting evidence".
The society previously claimed: "The UK media is not bigoted and will not be swayed from its vital role holding the rich and powerful to account following the attack on the press by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex".
However, the society later said: "Our statement on Meghan and Harry was made in that spirit but did not reflect what we all know: that there is a lot of work to be done in the media to improve diversity and inclusion.
"We will reflect on the reaction our statement prompted and work towards being part of the solution."
