MUM'S THE WORD
Piers Morgan gets told off by his mum on GMB after he slams four-hour queues for ‘extremely boring’ Ikea
PIERS Morgan received an angry backlash from Ikea fans - including his mum - after he slammed shoppers for queuing for four hours in the heat.
The Good Morning Britain star, 55, was left baffled by pictures of hundreds of shoppers snaking round a car park as the Swedish furniture giant reopened some of its stores yesterday.
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He said: "You know when I said I thought people were losing their minds with coronavirus. I think the queues outside Ikea are illustrative of ...
"I'm all for getting the economy going, but what are you buying that is worth standing four hours in a queue in the sunshine? Quite extraordinary.
"Genuinely fascinated by the psychology of the Ikea queuers."
However, when it came to fast food outlets, Piers Morgan had a different opinion.
"McDonald's, I get it. I would queue for about eight hours right now for a Big Mac, but Ikea, what are you buying? A bit of plywood."
Later in the show, Susanna Reid informed him that Ikea shoppers had tweeted in defence of the store in their droves.
She said: "The Ikea crowd have come for you Piers Morgan..."
Checking his phone, Piers said: "My mother! 'Did you just say Billy Bookcase? Just what I need.'
"What are you talking about mother?"
The store sells the popular white bookcases for £35, but its plain design didn't impress Piers.
Meanwhile interior designer Kelly Hoppen text him: "You can be such a prat. People have been locked up for weeks staring at four walls. Ikea is fantastic at everything."
The show's Twitter account revelled in it, writing: "@piersmorgan has faced some backlash from the Ikea faithful, including his own mum!"
Ikea reopened 19 branches yesterday.
Images from shops across the country showed lines of customers queuing around store car parks, with some shoppers having arrived as early as 5.30am.
Customers have also faced 30-minute waits in their vehicles just to get into store car parks.
Elsewhere, one shopper described how the queues to get into the Reading branch took up three levels of car park.
In some stores, customers were seen being separated by metal barriers and red tape.
As well as queuing outside, shoppers have also been lining up across inside car parking spaces.
Tweeting an image of the scene at their local branch, the shopper said: "Three parking floors of queue at Reading."
Another shopper tweeted: "Just at the Ikea in Warrington, being told 30-minute queue to get into the car park and then a two-hour wait to get into the store. Apparently about 1,000 people waiting."
A third Ikea fan said: "Queue for Ikea Leeds [looks] horrendous. Must be 1,000 people here. If you haven't set off yet then I wouldn't bother."
Another tweeted: "Ikea Belfast reopened today. Apparently the queue can be seen from space."
Meanwhile, this customer said: "I am pretty desperate for a few things from Ikea but learning people have been queuing at my local one since 5.30am makes me very glad I didn’t brave it today."
The reopening of Ikea comes after the Government eased restrictions on homeware retailers and garden centres.
Shoppers visiting newly reopened Ikea stores have to follow strict social distancing measures, and Ikea are only allowing one adult and one child per household inside at any one time.
Play areas and restaurants will remain shut, although customers can buy food, including Ikea’s popular meatballs, from food courts.
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Bosses said they aim to limit customer numbers via a staggered entry system and are asking shoppers to “come prepared with ready-made lists and own bags”.
Extra hand sanitiser and more deep cleans of bags, trolleys, bathrooms, equipment and touchscreens will take place.
Click and collect facilities are also available again.
Due to separate lockdown measures, stores in Scotland, Wales and the Republic of Ireland will remain closed for browsing, though.
Ikea has 22 shops in the UK, three order and collection points, and two planning studios in London.
The planning studios, and order and collection points are yet to reopen.
Ikea temporarily closed its stores on March 22, in line with Government lockdown restrictions.
An Ikea spokesperson told The Sun: "We’re really pleased to be welcoming our customers and co-workers back to our stores today.
"Their health and safety remains our top priority, which is why have put extensive and enhanced measures in place to create a safe and comfortable experience.
"Whilst we understand it’s frustrating for customers to face delays due to these measures, they are in place for everyone’s safety, and we’re grateful for everyone’s patience in respecting them."
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