'He thought he was untouchable': Why David Walliams is 'despised'

In July 2020, I drove up the M6 to meet a woman who had contacted me to share some worrying and bizarre experiences she had had with Britain's Got Talent judge David Walliams.

The woman, who was in her early 20s at the time – but had been just 17 when she met the comedian after he contacted her on X/Twitter – trembled as she showed me evidence documenting their association.

There were reams of text messages, a Christmas card and, perhaps most pointedly, a highly aggressive letter from Schillings, the notorious attack-dog celebrity law firm.

In uncompromising language, the firm's partners sharply warned this young woman against discussing with the Press her relationship with Walliams, who was then at the height of his fame. Citing his privacy, they claimed she was at risk of committing a serious civil offence if she were to share correspondence between herself and the star.

The letter further claimed she would be at risk of having to pay the comedian damages or his legal costs, which would have been far beyond her means. In a final ominous suggestion, Schillings advised her to instruct her own lawyers.

It was quite the document for this young woman, who felt both silenced and denied the opportunity to reveal her experiences with Walliams, which she said had been inappropriate.

Yesterday this woman, whose anonymity I will of course maintain, will surely have felt exonerated by the revelation that Walliams, now 54, has been dropped by his publisher HarperCollins UK, amid claims he behaved inappropriately towards young women.

The Telegraph reported the decision was made after Walliams was accused of 'harassing' junior female employees at the prestigious publisher, with one reportedly receiving a five-figure payout and later leaving the company.

Shockingly, it was even claimed female employees were told to work in 'pairs' when meeting the star, and ordered not to visit his house. It further emerged that an investigation into Walliams's behaviour was reportedly launched in 2023 after a junior employee raised concerns, leading to other staff members being interviewed.

Not wanting to admit any wrongdoing on the part of one of their most successful authors, a spokesman said: 'After careful consideration, and under the leadership of its new CEO, HarperCollins UK has decided not to publish any new titles by David Walliams.'

Despite the nature of the horrific allegations, HarperCollins did not confirm the reasons for its decision, adding: 'We do not comment on internal matters.'

Last night, Walliams's agent said: 'David has never been informed of any allegations raised against him by HarperCollins. He was not party to any investigation or given any opportunity to answer questions. David strongly denies that he has behaved inappropriately and is taking legal advice.'

The episode marks a stunning downfall for Walliams, who is one of Britain's most successful children's authors, having sold more than 60 million copies in 55 languages, as well as being a household name on TV. HarperCollins published his first children's book, The Boy in the Dress, in 2008, while some of his other books, including Gangsta Granny and Billionaire Boy, have also been adapted into television films.

Yesterday, when the news broke, there was relief in the showbusiness and television worlds where Walliams is, I'm told, 'utterly despised'. One source said last night: 'Finally, someone has said it. It's no longer a secret that he is just not a very nice person.'

Indeed, for years it wasn't just Schillings that Walliams paid to protect his interests, but also his fearsome publicists at MBC PR, whose client list has included the alleged rapist Russell Brand.

I can also reveal that showbusiness reporters at The Sun were told to drop negative stories about Walliams because both that newspaper and HarperCollins are owned by Rupert Murdoch's NewsUK, even sharing offices near London Bridge.

But for all the efforts of the people who tried to protect him, Walliams's behaviour has been one of the biggest open secrets in the industry. A former member of staff on Britain's Got Talent, for example, told me that Walliams was 'hideously rude' to her when she worked there.

Simon Cowell, the music mogul who hired the ex-Little Britain comedian to appear on the talent show back in 2010, has distanced himself from his former friend in recent years. The pair would regularly socialise, enjoying dinners in Mayfair restaurants, but today Cowell no longer even 'follows' Walliams on social media.

Notoriously, Walliams left BGT in November 2022 under a cloud after audio emerged of him making disparaging remarks about contestants off-camera.

Microphones had picked up him using vile misogynistic language, describing one female as 'like the slightly boring girl you meet in the pub that thinks you want to f*** them, but you don't'.

While the comments were made when he and his fellow judges, Simon Cowell, Alesha Dixon and Amanda Holden were off-air, an agreement had been made that all their comments would be recorded for potential use.

Although Walliams publicly apologised, he sued the production company Fremantle for misuse of private information and breaching data laws. The company apologised and Walliams is thought to have walked away with about £5 million.

But while he may have bolstered his bank balance, he lost many friends in the industry. As I reported last week, bosses at the ITV talent show were deeply concerned when they learned Walliams had a habit of inviting fans back to his dressing room and dishing out cupcakes.

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Some bosses at ITV, where BGT is screened, are said to 'not be fans of his at all'. And nor, it seems, are chiefs at other television networks. Showbusiness sources tell me that offers to appear on TV are drying up, while a brief attempt to reignite the comedy series Little Britain with his on-screen collaborator Matt Lucas fell flat.

And, since BGT ended for him three years ago, there has been no prime-time show, although two weeks ago he appeared as a guest on BBC Saturday night quiz show The Wheel.

His area of expertise was James Bond, though viewers observed that Walliams looked somewhat bored and came across as chippy-appearing on the format.

After he was 'shut down' on a question about the weather by one of the contestants – he had actually known the correct answer while they got it wrong – he yelled: 'Guess who got it right?' Then he waved and said, 'Bye' aggressively at the departing contestant.

Walliams might have thought he was being funny, but some viewers felt it came across as mean.

As for his ex-wife Lara Stone, mother of their 12-year-old son, Alf, I'm told she's no fan of his. In fact, she even contacted the woman I met back in 2020 to check she was OK, after Walliams invited the young woman to carry out work experience at his firm, King Bert, as well as to be his guest at a Britain's Got Talent show in London, and at auditions in Birmingham.

Last night, one former colleague called me to share her joy that, finally, Walliams was facing the scrutiny he'd fought hard to keep at bay for years.

'He wielded so much power and thought he was untouchable,' she said. 'He thought he could behave as he liked. Now, finally, we might be getting closer to the truth.'