Multiple women have accused David Walliams of sexual misconduct as the TV star and author was accused of abusing his power to groom teenagers as young as 15.
He was named as part of an investigation by the Guardian and ITV News on Tuesday, after he tried to obtain an injunction to prevent the reporting of allegations against him.
One woman described her alleged encounter with Walliams, when she was 15, as a “sexual assault”.
Multiple women accuse him of “grooming” them when they were teenagers.
Walliams denies any wrongdoing.
In a letter understood to have been sent several months ago by Walliams to journalists working on the ITV News and Guardian investigations, the television personality wrote: “Looking back, I realise that at times I behaved thoughtlessly towards other people I had casual sexual relationships with.
“I realise I did not always take people’s feelings properly into account. That is something I regret. And whilst a power imbalance is inevitable when one party is famous, abusing that power is something else entirely and it is something that I never did.”
He added: “I am not a sexual predator. I have not broken the law, but I am devastated that some of the women I met 10 to 20 years ago have now expressed hurt or anger towards me.”
Walliams has yet to respond following the publication of his name on Tuesday.
Several sources alleged inappropriate behaviour towards women at the prime-time show Britain’s Got Talent (BGT), where Walliams served as a judge, and his publisher HarperCollins.
One woman, named by ITV News and the Guardian as Jade, said she was 15 and Walliams was 36 when they met in August 2007 and he invited her to his house.
She claimed what happened to her there was “sexual assault” and “grooming”, adding: “It’s completely wrong in every way.”
Walliams strongly denied to the publications that he had any sexual contact with Jade, adding that he rejects any allegations of criminal activity and he has never engaged in the grooming of young women.
Another woman, named by the news organisations as Alex, alleged she was having sex with Walliams by the time she was 17.
Asked how she feels about him now, she said: “I think I was groomed. 100%.”
Walliams told the publications he believed she was 18 at the time they had sex.
His lawyers say the suggestion he groomed Alex is false and has caused him significant distress.
Another young woman, Lilly Creightmore, said she met Walliams when she was 18 at a live filming of Little Britain.
She said she had a troubled home life so stayed with him in his flat, where she slept on the sofa.
She claimed he asked her to stay in his bed every night.
She told the news organisations: “He would plead with me to share a bed with him and paw at me, trying to make me feel sorry for him.
“He definitely crossed the line physically in moments, when I was young, trying to coerce me into sleeping with him.”
Lawyers for Walliams said he saw her as a close friend and is mortified that she feels he was grooming her, which he denies. He also denies targeting her because she was young and vulnerable and insists he did not say or do anything inappropriate.
A model, named as Ella, was 19 when she met Walliams, then 36, in 2007, and attended a party at his house.
She alleges he tried to kiss her when they were alone and she “ducked underneath his arm and ran away”.
Ella said she felt “vulnerable” and “intimidated” and described the encounter as “unwanted physical touching and emotional manipulation”. She said she felt like she “dodged a bullet”.
Walliams said he made a “clumsy pass” at Ella but made no further approaches.
Walliams, 55, brought legal action against Independent Television News (ITN) – which makes ITV News – and Guardian News and Media (GNM), publisher of the Guardian, before the two organisations reported the allegations against him.
Walliams denied the claims and unsuccessfully sought an injunction to prevent publication because of the risk he would take his own life, after two previous suicide attempts.
The author was granted anonymity during the proceedings, which was lifted after his injunction bid was dismissed and the investigations were published on Tuesday.
They also included allegations about Walliams’ conduct at BGT, and at his publisher HarperCollins.
One former junior employee at BGT, named as Mark, said he walked into Walliams’ dressing room and found two “very young” people in the room while the TV judge was only wearing a towel.
At the end of the series Mark received £300 from Walliams with a signed card. Mark claimed a senior member of the production staff called it “hush money”.
Walliams denies he was “buying” Mark’s silence and there was nothing that needed “covering up”.
The star says he tipped staff every year and the amount he gave Mark was no higher than normal. He describes the employee’s comments as a “smear”.
Walliams has his Labour Party membership suspended on Tuesday after the accusations against him emerged, with Downing Street also describing the allegations as “deeply troubling”.
A spokesperson for Fremantle UK said: “We are disturbed and concerned at these serious allegations. David Walliams has not been a judge on Britain’s Got Talent for more than four years.
“During his time on the show and in the intervening period, no complaint was ever made regarding his behaviour to Fremantle UK. If anyone feels they have been the subject of any impropriety or wrongdoing by anyone on any Fremantle or associated labels’ productions, we encourage them to come forward.
“We will treat any complaints seriously. Protecting the welfare of our employees, freelancers, contributors and fans has always been and absolutely remains paramount for the company.”
A former staff member at HarperCollins said normal working practices had to be changed around Walliams and young women were not sent on their own to his home.
It is alleged he had a sexual relationship with at least one junior employee and pursued another.
During a two-day trial in October, the court was told that reporters from the media organisations had spoken to more than 100 people, including more than 30 sources with first-hand accounts as well as Walliams’ friends and colleagues.
Walliams’ lawyers said he initially attempted suicide after receiving letters from ITN and GNM asking for his reply to the allegations, because of “long-term trauma and the fear of trial by media”.
Walliams, known for appearing in comedy shows including Come Fly With Me and Little Britain alongside Matt Lucas, has sold more than 60 million copies of his children’s books globally.
They include The Boy In The Dress, Fing and Gangsta Granny, the latter of which was turned into a one-hour BBC special in 2013, followed by a sequel starring Sheridan Smith in 2022.
Walliams’ book publisher HarperCollins dropped him in December 2025 after an investigation into allegations that he had “harassed” young women, which Walliams denied.
Earlier this month, theme park Alton Towers permanently closed its World Of David Walliams attraction, which featured rides inspired by the books.
Walliams – who joined BGT as a judge in 2012 – left the panel in 2022 after he apologised for making “disrespectful comments” about auditioning contestants during filming breaks in January 2020 at the London Palladium.
In 2023, BGT production company Fremantle apologised and reached an “amicable resolution” with Walliams after the remarks he made while on the show were leaked.
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