GMB's Susanna Reid hits back at guest who calls her 'darling' during tense debate

Susanna Reid hit back at a guest on Good Morning Britain who referred to her as "darling" during a tense debate on Monday's show. 

Susanna and her co-host Ed Balls welcomed Insulate Britain activist Tracey Mallaghan onto the programme to discuss climate protests amid the recent disruption at former chancellor George Osborne's wedding, which saw a protester throw orange confetti over the newly married couple. 

The 52-year-old journalist had asked Tracey to clarify her argument after the activist said that the government was "writing climate denial reports" behind the scenes while telling the public that they were tackling the issue of climate change. 

"Come on Ed, you need to do a bit of heavy leaning," said Tracey, prompting Susanna to ask: "Tell us what happened?"

© S Meddle/ITV/Shutterstock

Tracey responded: "What happened with what, darling?"

Susanna was quick to hit back at Tracey and politely said: "Sorry, you don't need to call me darling."

Viewers praised Susanna for her response on Twitter, with one person quoting the ITV broadcaster before dropping a string of flame emojis, while another wrote: "How dare she call @susannareid100 darling uurrrgghhh."

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Elsewhere during the debate, Susanna was left baffled after Tracey accused the presenter of making her cry while tuning into a previous episode of the current affairs programme. 

Tracey referenced a previous episode of the show from 2021 when Susanna questioned whether Insulate Britain's Liam Norton's own home was insulated during a debate sparked by protesters who caused disruption by walking towards traffic on the M25.

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After praising weather presenter Laura Tobin for her efforts to raise awareness of climate change on the programme, Tracey told Ed and Susanna: "You don't help Laura when you hear her and then say [to Liam], 'Is your house insulated?' like that's the wit of the world when it's really not."

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Clearly confused, Susanna began: "I still don't understand why that made you cry?"

Tracey interjected: "You still don't understand why that made me cry? You don't understand why you hearing about our children facing drought, famine and war, and your response being, 'Is your house insulated, Liam?' broke my heart, Susanna?"

Satirical comedian Konstantin Kisin, who was also part of Monday's debate, chimed in, asking Tracey what percentage of global climate emissions Britain is responsible for before revealing the two per cent statistic. 

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Tracey last appeared on the programme back in 2021, when she clashed with Richard Madeley during a discussion about protestors on the M25. 

At the end of the interview, Richard, who was clearly irked, ended the debate by saying: "Tracy, thank you very much for coming in but not answering a single question.

© Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock

"You're watching Good Morning Britain on ITV," he said as the show's theme tune played. As the cameras panned out, the presenter could be seen shaking his head at Tracey.