Gayle King Was ‘Surprised’ by Ex-Husband’s Public Apology

Photo: Jamie McCarthy/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty images
In the words of the great philosopher Justin Drew Bieber: Is it too late now to say sorry? Gayle King was surprised that her ex-husband, William Bumpus, issued a public apology to King and their children and grandchildren for the pain he caused her decades ago, shortly after King opened up about his affair on Call Her Daddy this week. “I was surprised, but I can also say, I appreciated what he had to say,” she told TMZ. “I appreciate it, because listen, that was a very painful time. Anybody that’s been through it knows how painful it is, but I also know that you can go through and get through it on the other side. This happened so long ago that we have both healed, we have both moved on, and the reason why I can talk about it so candidly, to be honest with you, is because it has been so much time that has passed … I was very, very surprised. He didn’t say anything to me about it, so I was surprised, but I’m very appreciative.”
Shortly after the Call Her Daddy episode aired, Bumpus released a public apology, expressing “My deepest apologies to Gayle, to our daughter Kirby and her husband, Virgil, to our son William and his wife, Elise, and to our three grandchildren, for the pain I caused decades ago. Those actions were mine. I have long owned them — including publicly in my own words in 2016, which still stand,” he shared in a statement to TMZ on May 27. “Gayle has every right to share what was a painful chapter that changed the trajectory of our marriage and our family nearly forty years ago. I respect her right to tell her story, and that’s where I’ll leave it.”
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