Piers Morgan steps back from TV after developing coronavirus symptom

British TV host Piers Morgan is taking a break from his role on “Good Morning Britain” while he awaits the results of a Covid-19 test.

Morgan said in a tweet Sunday that he noticed a “mild” symptom of the virus and had taken a test out of an “abundance of caution.”

He had previously hosted the show from ITV’s studio. The Monday edition of the program was instead presented by Ben Shephard, alongside Morgan’s regular co-host Susanna Reid.

UPDATE: On medical advice, and out of an abundance of caution for a mild symptom that arose in past 48hrs, I’ve had a test for COVID-19 and so won’t be working on @GMB until I get the result back, which should be tomorrow.

— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) May 3, 2020

Morgan has become a prominent face of Britain’s coronavirus coverage in recent weeks, receiving both praise and criticism for his combative style when interviewing government figures.

Last week, the former newspaper editor and CNN host celebrated being cleared by UK media watchdog Ofcom, after viewers complained about his interviews with health minister Helen Whately and health secretary Matt Hancock.

Whately told Morgan, “You’re shouting at me and not giving me a chance to answer” during a confrontational video-conference interview about a lack of testing and personal protective equipment (PPE) in British care homes.

Morgan later said on Twitter that the interview “probably wasn’t quite as ‘uncomfortable’ as what our under-protected NHS & carer frontline heroes are going through.”

The coronavirus pandemic has also turned Morgan into a critic of US President Donald Trump, whom he has previously described as a friend.

“He’s turning these briefings into a self-aggrandizing, self-justifying, overly defensive, politically partisan, almost like a rally to him — almost like what’s more important is winning the election in November,” Morgan told CNN last month.

He separately told Trump on Twitter to “stop whining, get serious & show some damn empathy” over Covid-19.