David Walliams has said he is "devastated" by allegations of sexual misconduct and declared "I am not a sexual predator", after ITV News and the Guardian named him as the famous man who lost a High Court injunction battle.
The 55-year-old author and TV star failed to secure an injunction to prevent the reporting of allegations made by multiple women, including claims relating to when they were teenagers. He has denied any wrongdoing.
Walliams' full statement
In a letter addressed to journalists working on the ITV and Guardian investigation, Walliams said: "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."
Legal action and investigation
Walliams brought legal action against Independent Television News (ITN) and Guardian News and Media (GNM), publisher of The Guardian, ahead of the two organisations reporting allegations against him, including of sexual misconduct and potential criminal activity.
Lawyers for the media organisations previously told the High Court in London the allegations involved Walliams' alleged "abuse of power and status" to contact young women and try to engage in "inappropriate and exploitative sexual activities".
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.
Court proceedings and publication
The author was granted anonymity during the proceedings, which was lifted after his injunction bid was dismissed and GNM and ITN published their investigations on Tuesday.
During a two-day trial in October, the court was told by the media organisations' lawyers that the allegations were gathered after "a wide-ranging and rigorous investigation" and that there was a "strong" public interest in publishing them.
The ITV News and Guardian investigation ran for three years before naming Walliams as the subject of the allegations.
