A clip of Jonathan Ross joking about David Walliams going home with a 15-year-old has resurfaced in a documentary investigating the author's alleged behaviour towards teenage girls and young women.
The joke was made as part of the 2004 National Comedy Awards. At the awards, Ross said: "The comedy awards is 15 years old - 15 years old! And like most 15 year olds, it's drunk, it's unpredictable and it's probably going home with David Walliams!"
The camera then cut to Walliams, who was sat with his Little Britain co-star Matt Lucas, and stuck two fingers up at Ross, whilst laughing. Ross has since said, via lawyers, that he did not write the joke and merely read it.
Documentary investigation
The clip was used as part of a documentary put together by ITV News and The Guardian, which investigated Walliams' behaviour towards young women and teenage girls.
In the documentary, several women shared allegations about the author, including one who alleged that he sexually assaulted her when she was 15. 'Jade' said she met him after he privately messaged her on MySpace and subsequently met him in a cafe, where, she alleged, he asked her about whether she had ever had sex. "I said I hadn't. I didn't like talking about that kind of stuff," Jade added.
Jade continued to say that after they finished their coffees, Walliams offered to walk her to a tube station and kissed her down a side street. After the kiss, Jade claims Walliams invited her back to his house where he groped her inside and tried to put her hand in his trousers.
Allegations and denial
"I wasn't ready for sex," Jade said. "I didn't want to do that, with him or with anyone. I didn't want to be touched in that way at all. I mean, I was only a 15-year-old." Walliams strongly denied this.
Other allegations against Walliams include grooming a girl he met when she was 15, another he met when she was 18 and "vulnerable" and plying a teenager with alcohol in order to have sex with her. The documentary also discussed allegations that he harassed women who worked on Britain's Got Talent and women working for former publisher Harper Collins. Walliams has denied all wrongdoing.
In a letter addressed to the journalists working on the investigation, Walliams 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. 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 police contact
It has also been revealed that Walliams was the unnamed celebrity who took legal action against Independent Television News (ITN) and Guardian News and Media (GNM), publisher of The Guardian, to prevent publication of the allegations. The court heard they intended to report his alleged "abuse of power and status" to contact young women and try to engage in "inappropriate and exploitative sexual activities".
Walliams, who has always denied the claims, was seeking an injunction to prevent this broadcast and publication because of a risk that he would take his own life, following two previous suicide attempts. Judge Mr Justice Nicklin denied the injunction on November 3, and his legal team decided not to appeal before the deadline ended today, which means Walliams can be named as the man at the centre of the case.
The Metropolitan Police said it has contacted the Guardian and ITV News to "ensure that any potential victims" are "made aware of how they could report any criminal allegations to police", after claims of sexual misconduct were made against Walliams.
