David Walliams has been removed from the Waterstones Children's Book Festival after allegations of inappropriate behaviour. The bookshop chain confirmed the bestselling author will no longer appear at the Dundee event on February 7, following HarperCollins' decision to stop publishing new titles by him.
HarperCollins cut ties with Walliams after an investigation into complaints of harassment towards junior female staff at the publisher. One woman who raised concerns reportedly left the company after a settlement involving a five-figure payout. Walliams has denied the allegations and said he was not informed of any complaints or given an opportunity to respond.
A Waterstones spokesperson said: 'HarperCollins have confirmed that David Walliams will no longer be appearing at our festival in Dundee.' The publisher stated: 'After careful consideration, and under the leadership of its new CEO, HarperCollins UK has decided not to publish any new titles by David Walliams.'
The controversy follows earlier incidents, including Walliams making Nazi salutes during a recording of 'Would I Lie to You?', which the BBC said would not be broadcast. A Banijay UK spokesperson noted the segment was immediately acknowledged as unsuitable. A BBC spokesperson added: 'While we’re not making any changes to the festive schedules, we have no future projects directly involving David Walliams.'
Two of Walliams' books, 'Mr Stink' and 'The Boy in the Dress', were adapted for television and aired on CBBC on Sunday.
