David Walliams's celebrity inner circle is facing criticism over failing to speak out on the allegations against the comedian. A virtual wall of silence has surrounded the star's celebrity peers and artistic collaborators since an exposé published on Tuesday alleged sexual misconduct, alleging he targeted girls as young as 15 across two decades. Walliams has denied criminal wrongdoing, grooming young women or abusing his position.
Silence from close collaborators
Matt Lucas, who co-created Little Britain with Walliams, has said nothing publicly about the allegations. The pair were co-hosts of the podcast Making a Scene until last year. Lucas sends a "good morning" message to his one million followers on X most mornings, but the greeting has been conspicuous by its absence since the beginning of last week.
Amanda Holden, who shared the Britain's Got Talent judging panel with Walliams for a decade, has also kept quiet. Presenting her Heart Breakfast radio show alongside Jamie Theakston on Wednesday, Holden made no reference to the allegations, even as they featured in the station's morning news bulletins. Fellow BGT judges Simon Cowell and Alesha Dixon have similarly maintained public silence.
Industry figures weigh in
Cowell is understood to have had no contact with Walliams, 55, since he left the show under a cloud in 2022 after being found to have made derogatory comments about contestants. Comedians Jimmy Carr and Ricky Gervais, who was photographed with Walliams and accuser Lilly Creightmore at a 2003 charity event, have also refrained from commenting.
Jonathan Ross is currently the only high-profile figure in Walliams's circle to have publicly addressed the claims. Ross, 65, issued his statement after footage resurfaced of him making a joke about Walliams and 15-year-olds at the British Comedy Awards in 2004. Ross said he was "horrified" by the allegations against Walliams and the conviction of Russell Brand.
"There was a time in my life when I was on friendly terms with both men, and during that period I was genuinely unaware of their conduct," Ross said. "My thoughts are with the many, many women who have bravely come forward."
Calls for more men to speak out
Dorothy Byrne, former head of news and current affairs at Channel 4, branded the industry response "disappointing", adding: "It makes you wonder, 'Did people know or see something?' But they don't want to say anything because then someone might come forward and say, 'You were there when you saw that.' So they just want to stay well out of it.
"The men are probably advised by their agents not to get involved because if you say something, then people will start looking at you. But for this to be a watershed moment, lots of famous people should come out and say, 'This is utterly wrong, I condemn it, it must all stop.' That's what watershed moments require."
According to The Times, Byrne said female friends of Walliams may fear being branded "troublemakers", or being sued if they speak out. "In the world of comedy, the worst thing is to be labelled as humourless," she said. "Worse than standing by while a woman is being assaulted and humiliated. That has to change."
Baroness Kennedy of The Shaws, the Labour peer and chair of the Creative Industries Independent Standards Authority, the safeguarding watchdog, agreed that men needed to raise the alarm if the culture is to be improved. She told Times Radio: "Men need to be speaking up and saying, 'Come on [David], come on Russell — that's not on'. But often it's [that] other men … don't want to fall out with people and they don't want to sound prudish. And they also just think it's laddish and they don't understand the toll that it can take, particularly on young people."
Penny East, Chief Executive of the Fawcett Society, which campaigns for women's rights, said: "More men need to step up, speak out, and condemn the crimes of men like Russell Brand. The silence from many is notable. Of course, while it would be great to hear men condemn it now, it would have been far better if male friends and colleagues actually spoke out it while it was happening. Right now, there will be many, many men who know friends and colleagues who are demonstrating deeply troubling and misogynistic behaviours. I hope some of those men might see the recent news and feel compelled to call it out."
