Anne Hegerty, the 'Governess' on ITV's The Chase, has faced backlash after sharing her views on the murder of American conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Kirk, 31, was shot and killed on September 10 at Utah Valley University. Tyler Robinson, 22, has been charged with capital murder.
Hegerty posted on X to her 148,000 followers: 'I had never heard of Charlie Kirk before Wednesday night. Had we met, my end of the conversation would have been "You just said WHAT?" and "Scuse me, those are my FRIENDS you're talking about."' She added: 'I join Bernie Sanders in deploring his murder.'
Commenters criticised her remarks as 'stupid and terribly misinformed'. One wrote: 'Anne, look at his debates before making assumptions - P.S. your head is big.' Hegerty replied: 'I know, it always has been. In the jungle, I had the second largest hat size.' Another user said: 'You've never heard of him yet you make stupid assumptions.' Hegerty responded: 'You know, Americans, this kind of hair-trigger angriness and sensitivity and telling people to stop talking is exactly why you get people doing this sort of thing in the first place.'
Kirk, known for his MAGA views and campus debates, was shot in the neck from about 200 yards while answering a question about mass shootings. He died in hospital two-and-a-half hours later. Robinson appeared in court on Wednesday, wearing a suicide vest, and spoke only to confirm his details.
