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David Walliams accused of grooming teenage girls after High Court lifts reporting block
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The author and comedian denies breaking the law. The BBC has begun reviewing all of his material on its platforms.
David Walliams, the comedian and children’s author, has been accused by several women of using his fame to groom and sexually exploit them when they were teenagers or young women. He denies the allegations.
The claims were published on Tuesday after a joint investigation by The Guardian and ITV News that ran for three years. The two outlets say they spoke to more than 100 people. The earliest allegations date from 2003, when Walliams was in his thirties.
One woman alleges that he sexually assaulted her at his London home when she was 15. Another says he contacted her on social media when she was 15 and later invited her to his house, where she alleges he assaulted her. His lawyers deny that any sexual contact took place. A third woman says he groomed her from the age of 15 and that they had sex when she was 17. His lawyers say he believed she was 18.
One woman alleges that he sexually assaulted her at his London home when she was 15.
According to a summary of the court judgment, some of the alleged conduct could amount to criminal offences if proven. Walliams has not been charged with any offence. The Metropolitan Police contacted both outlets to make sure potential victims knew how to report allegations.
In a letter to the journalists, Walliams wrote: “I am not a sexual predator.” He said he had not broken the law. He also admitted to having casual relationships in which he had sometimes “behaved thoughtlessly”, and said he was “devastated” that some women he met 10 to 20 years ago had expressed hurt or anger towards him.
Walliams had applied to the High Court for an injunction to stop publication. Mr Justice Nicklin refused it on 3 November and called the request “an exceptionally serious interference” with the outlets’ rights. The judge accepted that Walliams has a serious and longstanding psychiatric vulnerability. His identity stayed protected until his deadline to appeal ran out late on Monday.
Several organisations moved quickly once the investigation was published. The BBC is removing some programmes, Little Britain among them, while it reviews all material featuring or written by Walliams. Independent Talent Group, his agency, said it was no longer representing him in any capacity. The producers of the film Fing! have cut his cameo.
These are not the first claims of their kind. In December 2025, HarperCollins UK dropped Walliams after reports that it had investigated his conduct towards junior female staff. He strongly denied those claims. He left Britain’s Got Talent in 2022, after recordings leaked of him making disrespectful comments about contestants.
Walliams, 55, co-created Little Britain with Matt Lucas and has written around 40 children’s books, including Gangsta Granny and Mr Stink.
