Good Morning Britain viewers were left unimpressed with the debate on Wednesday’s programme.As Remembrance Sunday nears, poppies are donned by many to honour those who fell in the war.
Yet, journalist Kevin Maguire chose not to sport a poppy on the show, explaining he reserves wearing one for the week leading up to Remembrance Sunday. This stance prompted a varied response from viewers online, igniting a discussion on the show about the appropriateness of questioning someone’s choice to wear a poppy.
The ‘poppy pressure’ debate didn’t go down well with people watching as the overall consensus was that wearing a poppy should be a personal choice, reports the Mirror.
Taking to social media to share their thoughts, one viewer commented: “Remember the days when you wore a poppy and nobody said a thing, when did it all change to this absolute nonsense.”
Another stated: “No, everyone shouldn’t wear a poppy. Don’t be absurd.”
A third shared: “I don’t wear a poppy badge because I always lose them. The flowers fall out and the badge’s backs fall off. I always buy a poppy of some kind every year. Just because I don’t wear one, does NOT mean I don’t support the cause or remember those who died in the war. #GMB,”.
An additional comment read: “I don’t need to wear a poppy to remember, my god.”
And another tweet expressed: “Absolutely not is it ok to challenge someone for not wearing a poppy, do we have no choices left ? ? Why do people have to judge all the time ? ? #GMB.”
One supporter of the debate remarked: “I guess this poppy item is a way of increasing awareness.”
The discussion on poppies was ignited as Kate Garraway and Ed Balls welcomed former SAS soldier Rusty Firmin to share his perspective.
In response to whether he would confront someone not donning a poppy, Rusty Firmin stated: “Well, there’s different ways of calling people out isn’t there? There’s an abrupt way going into their face, I think that’s wrong.”
Rusty continued by detailing his approach, saying, “There’s also ways, that I’ve challenged people in the past, not nastily, but I’m used to working with a lot of veterans who tend to wear it all the time. The fact is, they’ve got respect for what the poppy means.”
He emphasized understanding that not everyone will wear a poppy while also stressing the loss of educational input about its symbolism.
Speaking to the presenters, he raised concerns about the diminishing number of poppy wearers, adding: “You can’t make them wear it, but you can advise them that this is the reason why.”
Rusty pointed out the diverse interpretations of the poppy today: “You ask somebody what the poppy stands for. Nowadays you’ve got a black poppy, a white poppy, a purple poppy.
“It all started with the red poppy and it’s there for respect of the fallen. You’re sat here today, I’m sat here, these guys are working because of the guys who fought for this country. The blood that they get, is the red poppy.”
Good Morning Britain continues weekdays on ITV from 6am.