Miriam Margolyes hits the red carpet at Pride Of Britain Awards as she makes first public appearance since This Morning 'racism row' with Andi Peters

Miriam Margolyes made her first public appearance at the Pride Of Britain Awards on Monday since she was embroiled in a 'racism row' with Andi Peters.

The actress, 85, hit the red carpet in a striking blue dress and opted for a casual pair of grey trainers at London's Grosvenor Hotel.

Miriam, who is known for being outspoken, landed herself in hot water last month when she referred to the presenter as 'high yalla', when asking about his race during an episode of This Morning. 

The term, which can also be spelled 'high yaller' or 'high yellow' is an outdated and offensive slang term used in the US to describe a black person with a light complexion.

Miriam's comments, which were removed from the ITVX recording of the show, went viral, with many viewers taking to X to express their outrage over Miriam's comments.

During the initial exchange, Miriam impersonated presenter Christine Lampard's Northern Irish accent, before turning to Andi and asking: 'But what accent would be normal for you?'

'This is normal. This is what I am,' replied Andi, as Miriam continued: 'Oh, you're a mix, aren't you? You've got a black daddy and a white mummy.'

'No, no, no. Both my parents are black,' confirmed Andi, before he joked: 'What have they put on me, am I a lighter shade than normal?'

Miriam continued: 'Both parents are I think you're what I would call a "high yalla". That's what they call it in America. Oh, when someone isn't deeply black, right?'

'I didn't even know there were shades,' said Andi, as Miriam added: 'There are shades.'

Worried about the direction of the conversation, producers are thought to have issued a warning to Andi through his earpiece – with him then saying out loud: 'Oh, okay. They're getting nervous now. They're getting nervous now.'

'Don't be nervous,' reassured Miriam, 'We welcome everybody. That's what I want to write about in my book. It's about inclusion.'

She was then asked about the incident during an audience event to promote her new memoir, Miriam’s Full English, at Cliffs Pavilion in Southend.

In videos shared by audience members on social media, she insisted: 'I didn't want to embarrass or hurt Andi because he seems very nice.

'I'd never met him before; I didn't know who he was and I didn't know he was black until I saw him. When you see someone, of course you know they're black.

'I wanted to know what he thought about it because that's what interests me.'

Miriam then used an offensive term for disabled people as she continued: 'How do black people feel? How do brown people feel? How do cripples feel? How do fat people feel?

'You see what I mean? All of us feel something about who we are and how people see us, what they think of us.'

The host interjected to clarify that 'in other words you wanted to discuss his identity with him', to which the actress was in full agreement.

'I am fascinated by other people,' she continued. 'They are the people that interest me, not the celebrities so much. It's everybody. What their story is, what made them who they are, why you are the way you are.'