Production company settles with David Walliams after BGT comment leak

Britain’s Got Talent’s producer Fremantle has apologised and reached an “amicable resolution” with David Walliams after remarks he made while acting as a judge on the show were leaked.

The comedian, who appeared on the ITV talent show between 2012 and 2022, was suing the company a for misuse of private information and for breaching UK General Data Protection Regulation (UKGDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

High Court documents released last month said Walliams was accusing the company of causing him psychiatric harm and financial loss.

A Fremantle spokesperson said in a statement to the PA news agency on Monday: “We are pleased that we have achieved an amicable resolution of this dispute with David.

“We are sincerely sorry that his private conversations when a judge on Britain’s Got Talent were published, and the great distress this caused David.

“We have reviewed our production practices on the show to ensure they fully respect the expectations of our talent whilst satisfying the requirements of the show.

“We have enjoyed a great relationship with David over many years.

“We thank David for being an important part of the Britain’s Got Talent family and the enduring success of the show and hope to have opportunities to work with him in the future.”

The TV star, real name David Edward Williams, left Britain’s Got Talent last year after he apologised for making “disrespectful comments” about auditioning contestants during filming breaks in January 2020 at the London Palladium.

The remarks came to light in November 2022 after a transcript was leaked to the Guardian.

According to court documents, Walliams, 52, believed producers “retained transcripts… of everything he said” during his time on the show and claimed the defendant, FremantleMedia, “must be the ultimate source of the transcripts” that were leaked.

According to the documents, Walliams and the other judges on the show would not usually remove their microphones until filming had ended for the day, but the comedian assumed he was only being recorded when contestants were on stage or during behind-the-scenes filming.

Walliams alleged private conversations, including him talking about his struggles with food addiction, his father’s death and his wife leaving him, could have been recorded by the production company.

The filing also included details of a draft report by Dr Mark Collins, a retired consultant psychiatrist and practising psychotherapist, who has treated Walliams.

It said the leak of the transcript had “a profound, severe and, at times, very worrying effect on (Walliams’s) mental health.”

He also said that Walliams “is plagued by uncontrollable negative thoughts”, including “active suicidal thoughts” and he is “on heavier doses of medication than at any time during my being his consultant psychiatrist”.

Walliams also claimed his earnings from television and other public appearances had been “very severely reduced” as a result of negative publicity surrounding the story.

He did not return for the latest series earlier this year and was replaced by former Strictly Come Dancing judge Bruno Tonioli, who joined the judging panel alongside Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden and Alesha Dixon.

Walliams’ representatives have been approached for comment.

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