Piers Morgan apology for Susan Boyle

Britain's Got Talent judge Piers Morgan has apologised to Susan Boyle for the disrespectful views held by the judging panel before her audition.

In a joint appearance on CNN's Larry King Live, which aired in the US on Friday night and in the UK early Saturday morning, Morgan told Boyle: "I'm sorry".

"We did not give you anything like the respect we should have done when you first came out," he said. "It had been a long day in Glasgow, lots of terrible auditions, and then you came out and we thought you were going to be a bit of a joke act to be honest with you.

"I can remember every time I watch that clip I get taken back to that second when you start to sing and I have never heard a more surprising, extraordinary voice coming out of somebody so unexpected. And I mean that with the greatest respect to you.

"I am so thrilled about what's happening to you now."

Boyle's appearance on CNN last night rounded off a day of American media appearances for the overnight star, starting with a slot on CBS breakfast news programme The Early Show. The YouTube sensation broke through to American TV audiences when the audition video was shown on CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 during a look at what was making news online.

"I sang that song because it fit in with the circumstances at the time," Boyle explained to King. "I was aware that the title summed up what I was aiming for."