David Walliams can no longer hide. On 10 November 2026, the comedian and children’s author was named as the celebrity who tried to stop a major investigation from being published. He lost. The High Court refused his request to block the story.
The investigation was run jointly by The Guardian and ITV News. It took more than three years. It contains allegations that Walliams groomed fans he met when they were as young as 15. Also, it alleges he harassed women at work over a number of years.
Walliams is 55. He is one of the best-known faces on British television. He now has his name attached to some of the ugliest claims a public figure can face.
What the women say
Several women spoke to the journalists. Some say Walliams groomed them while they were teenagers. One woman told ITV News that what happened to her at 15 was grooming and a sexual assault. She is identified as Jade.
Another woman alleged he sexually assaulted her at his home when she was 15, according to the Associated Press. That is a child. These are allegations, and they are serious ones.
The investigation also heard from young models and fans. They say Walliams sent them unsolicited messages on social media. They were between 17 and 22 at the time. He was a famous man in his forties, and they were strangers who admired him.
Fans trusted him. The women allege he used that trust.
Trouble at work
The claims do not stop with fans. The report alleges inappropriate conduct and sexual harassment at Britain’s Got Talent. Walliams sat on the judging panel of that show for years. It was a flagship ITV hit with a huge audience.
The report also alleges harassment at HarperCollins, his publisher. People who worked in these places told journalists what they say they saw and experienced. Young women in junior roles are at the centre of those accounts.
A powerful star and a young woman with a fragile job do not stand on equal ground. The allegations describe exactly that gap, and they say he used it.
The publisher walked away
The HarperCollins story is not new. The publisher ended its contract with Walliams in 2025. That followed an internal investigation into alleged inappropriate behaviour and harassment towards junior female staff.
Walliams was one of the biggest children’s authors in the UK. His books sold in huge numbers but his publisher dropped him anyway.
His spokesperson said at the time that he strongly denied the claims. The spokesperson also said he had never been told about any allegations raised by HarperCollins, and was not part of its investigation. A legal dispute connected to the wider matter was reportedly settled in 2023.
So the publisher cut ties first. The wider public is only now hearing why the story keeps following him.
The injunction
Walliams did not wait quietly. His lawyers went to the High Court. They tried to stop the investigation from coming out and to keep his name out of it.
The court said no. That ruling is a fact, and it matters. A man who says he has nothing to hide spent legal fees trying to hide it.
Until 10 November, the press could only describe an unnamed celebrity. Headlines spoke of someone who allegedly preyed on teenage girls. Now there is a name. It belongs to a man who built a career on children’s stories and on being a friendly face for families.
A children’s author
Walliams wrote books for young readers. Millions of children read them. Parents trusted his name on the cover.
He also hosted and judged television aimed at the whole family. His image was warm and silly. He played the clown.
The allegations describe a very different man behind that image. They describe a man who met teenage fans and, the women say, saw opportunity. His public brand and his alleged private conduct sit far apart. That gap is the heart of this scandal.
ITV airs the documentary
ITV did not just publish a written report. It released an hour-long documentary, titled ‘David Walliams: Power & Silence’. It sets out the allegations on screen and lets the women speak.
ITV also faces its own questions. Walliams worked on its biggest talent show. The broadcaster said it takes the protection of employees, freelancers, contributors and fans seriously. It said this has long been its policy.
Viewers will judge for themselves whether that policy worked. The women in the report suggest the system around Walliams stayed quiet for too long.
His denial
Walliams denies everything. He says he is not a sexual predator. His lawyers deny the allegations of sexual harassment and inappropriate behaviour at work. They also deny any criminal conduct.
A denial is not a verdict. No court has ruled on these claims. No criminal charge has been reported. Those are the facts as they stand.
But a denial also has to stand against the volume of voices. Multiple women came forward. They described similar patterns. Some were children when it allegedly began. The reporting took years and drew on many
- Britain’s Got Talent
- David Walliams
