David Walliams sues Britain's Got Talent bosses over exit
The comedian and actor is said to be seeking significant damages after his departure from the show last year.
Former Britain's Got Talent judge David Walliams is reportedly suing show bosses after he was axed from the show last year.
According to The Sun, Walliams lodged papers against production company Fremantle at London's High Court last Thursday and is said to be seeking significant damages.
Walliams resigned from his stint as a judge on the ITV talent show in November 2022 following "inappropriate" remarks he made in 2020 during a recording of Britain's Got Talent.
The recordings included offensive and sexually explicit comments about contestants and according to a leaked transcript obtained by The Guardian, Walliams referred to one contestant as a "c**t" and was also reported to have said that a female contestant was "like the slightly boring girl you meet in the pub that thinks you want to f**k them, but you don't".
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In a statement to RadioTimes.com last year, Walliams said: "I would like to apologise to the people I made disrespectful comments about during breaks in filming for Britain’s Got Talent in 2020.
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"These were private conversations and – like most conversations with friends – were never intended to be shared. Nevertheless, I am sorry."
Now, according to The Sun, Walliams has accused Fremantle of a data protection breach over the leaked audio, arguing the remarks were part of private conversations that weren't intended for broadcast.
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RadioTimes.com has reached out to Fremantle, Thames and David Walliams's team for comment.
At the time, a spokesperson for BGT's production company Thames – the entertainment label of Fremantle in the UK – said that the language used was "inappropriate" and that "those involved have been spoken to and reminded of their responsibilities and the show's expectations as to future professional conduct", while Simon Cowell added: "Britain's Got Talent is a family show and we do not condone the use of any such language."
Although a source previously told RadioTimes.com that no decision had been made on the judging panel at that time, ITV confirmed that David Walliams would not be returning to Britain's Got Talent in January 2023 and announced the new judging panel, consisting of Simon Cowell, Alesha Dixon, Amanda Holden and new face Bruno Tonioli.
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