David Walliams on BGT co-star Ant McPartlin: It's "hard" when things get played out in public
In an interview with Radio Times, the Britain's Got Talent judge touches on the difficulties of being recognisable when "things go awry in your life"
David Walliams has said that having things play out in public is "hard" if you're in the public eye, as he addressed his Britain's Got Talent co-star Ant McPartlin's recent difficulties.
In an interview with Radio Times, Walliams was asked how he felt when he heard about McPartlin's arrest for drink driving (the presenter has subsequently been charged). He said: "Ant and Dec are popular beyond anybody's imagination, aren't they? Every single person who comes to the show says, 'Can we meet Ant and Dec?', and they are so generous with their time.
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"And they are incredibly relatable and recognisable, and the hard thing about when you're well-known is that when things go awry in your life, it gets played out in public.
"I've had similar things in my life," the comedian and author added. "I remember when my father was dying, I was on the phone to him and people were coming up for selfies. It's hard because they want you to be smiley and happy but you're going through something that's causing you pain."
In a wide-ranging interview, the 46-year-old also spoke about a "beautiful" audition he recalled from the latest series of Britain's Got Talent, which begins on Saturday 14th April: "We had a girl this year who was injured in the Manchester bombing, and she did a dance routine, and because she used a wheelchair, all her friends did too, so that was beautiful," he said.
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After seven years of judging BGT, alongside Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden and Alesha Dixon, Walliams says at this point in his life he has "a lot to be very, very thankful for."
"All is good. My career is great, I've got a beautiful son [four-year-old Alfred, by his ex-wife Lara Stone]. Of course there are things I worry about that sometimes keep me awake at night, but I've got a lot to be very, very thankful for.
"Being a parent is a great thing because it makes you a lot less self-obsessed," he continued ."All you really care about is that little person's life and what the future holds for them."
Read the full interview in the latest issue of Radio Times, on sale now
