James Corden: Texas school shooting is beyond comprehension

The comedian and host of The Late Late Show said that on the issue of gun laws America is “one of the most backward places in the world”.

Speaking during a monologue after the recording of his show on Tuesday, Corden addressed the atrocity in Texas, which has reportedly killed 19 children.

“As a father, I can’t imagine the horror of that phone call,” he said.

“When I dropped my kids off at school this morning and kissed them goodbye, it doesn’t cross your mind that that could ever be the last goodbye.

“And the thought of that phone call, that your child is the victim in a mass shooting is beyond comprehension as a human being.”

He continued: “I’m so deeply sad for the families of these children, the trauma of the survivors and for the future these kids will never see.

“It doesn’t make sense to me. It doesn’t reflect the country that I think America is, the America I have always admired.

“You have a problem, you solve it.

“Yet on this issue, America is one of the most backward places in the world.

“This year, there have been no school shootings in England, there have been no school shootings in Japan. This year, there have been no school shootings in Australia.

“This year, there have been 27 school shootings in America and 212 mass shootings and we are just five months into the year.”

He added: “I’ll probably be stood here in a week or two, talking about another place.

“Words of thoughts and prayers will come from our leaders but I fear change never will.

“I hold out hope that this country will eventually change this senseless gun culture and my heart simply goes out to every person in Texas tonight.”

Other Hollywood stars including Taylor Swift, Simu Liu, and Amy Schumer have also expressed their shock and anger, as well as actor Matthew McConaughey, who is from the town of Uvalde, where the shooting took place.