The BBC is under pressure to remove its forthcoming Would I Lie to You? Christmas special from the schedules, following allegations of inappropriate behaviour against guest panellist David Walliams.
Comedian and children’s author Walliams, 54, was dropped by publisher HarperCollins this week, after he was accused of behaving inappropriately towards young women. A junior colleague is said to have complained about his conduct, leading to other staff members being interviewed.
Former employees alleged to The Telegraph that they were advised to work in pairs when meeting with him and not to visit his home.
Walliams’s spokesperson said he “strongly denies” any claims and was not informed about or party to an investigation by HarperCollins.
Walliams is set to appear in Would I Lie to You? At Christmas, airing on BBC One on Boxing Day, alongside team captains David Mitchell and Lee Mack and fellow panellists Jools Holland, Swarzy Shire and Helen George.
The Telegraph has reported that one unnamed MP questioned the wisdom of airing a programme featuring Walliams, saying: “Innocent until proven guilty. But with the BBC’s record for getting it wrong, it probably would be better being safe than sorry.”
A BBC spokesperson told The Independent: “While we’re not making any changes to the festive schedules, we have no future projects directly involving David Walliams.”
Walliams’s appearance on the special episode made headlines earlier this year, after it emerged that he had given two Nazi salutes during the recording.
The former Little Britain star was said to have shocked host Rob Brydon and fellow celebrity panellists as well as audience members with the gesture.
At the time, the BBC apologised over the incident and the scene was deleted from the episode.
This evening (21 December), CBBC will air an adaptation of Walliams’s children’s book The Boy in the Dress.
Another of Walliams’s children’s books, Fing, is currently being adapted for the big screen in a production co-funded by Sky, with Walliams serving as an executive producer on the movie.
The Independent has contacted Sky for comment on the future of the project.
Walliams rose to fame more than 20 years ago through the comedy series Little Britain, alongside Matt Lucas. The show was hugely popular at the time but has come under fire in recent years over use of blackface in the series and claims it was sexist, classist and homophobic.
Following his TV career, Walliams has become one of the UK’s most established and successful award-winning children’s authors, selling an estimated 60 million copies worldwide. His books are widely used in schools.
In 2022, Walliams faced criticism after he was caught making obscene comments about contestants on Britain’s Got Talent.
A leaked transcript revealed that he called one auditioning contestant a “c***” and said of another: “She thinks you want to f*** her, but you don’t.”
Walliams subsequently left his role on the show, and apologised for the “disrespectful comments”, saying they were part of a private conversation that was “never intended to be shared”.
He sued FremantleMedia, the production company that makes BGT, for the leaking of his private remarks. The matter was settled in November 2023.
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