London: Rupert Murdoch’s British newspaper The Sun said it regretted publishing an “awful” column television personality Jeremy Clarkson wrote about Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, which attracted tens of thousands of complaints to the media watchdog.

Clarkson’s regular column in the top-selling News Corp UK tabloid, which has since been deleted from the website, said he was “dreaming of the day when she is made to parade naked through the streets of every town in Britain while crowds chant, ‘Shame!’ and throw lumps of excrement at her”.

The remarks sparked a huge backlash. The Independent Press Standards Organisation received more than 20,800 complaints, while Clarkson’s own daughter Emily, as well several leading public figures, condemned his words.

In a piece published on its website on Thursday evening, London time, the paper said its columnists’ opinions were their own, but as a publisher, it realised that “with free expression comes responsibility”.

“We at The Sun regret the publication of this article and we are sincerely sorry,” it said. “The article has been removed from our website and archives.”

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The paper said it has a “proud history of campaigning” in Britain over 50 years of working in partnership with charities, and said its campaigns had “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,” it said.

More than 60 British members of Parliament from across the political divide had written to The Sun’s editor Victoria Newton this week to demand an apology and “action taken” against Clarkson.