David Walliams mocks Simon Cowell over Britain’s Got Talent failure he ‘wasn’t happy’ about
Former ITV talent show colleagues are allegedly ‘no longer on speaking terms’
David Walliams has hit out at former Britain’s Got Talent colleague Simon Cowell amid an alleged feud.
The comedian was a judge on the ITV talent show from 2012 up until his departure in 2022, when it emerged that he had made sexually explicit and derogatory remarks about some of the contestants during a recording at the London Palladium in January 2020.
Walliams’s comments were picked up by the microphones on the desk and were seemingly not intended to be heard publicly –?and he sued FremantleMedia, the production company that makes BGT, for the leaking of his private remarks. The matter was settled in November 2023.
He decided to leave the show after issuing an apology.
On Tuesday (1 April), during an Advertising Week Europe panel, Walliams made a dig at his one-time fellow judge after the panel host Melanie Rockcliffe said: “David Walliams, you were a judge on Britain’s Got Talent for a decade and won best judge at the national TV Awards four times.”
Walliams, without missing a beat, replied: “Simon Cowell never won once.”
The comedian and author, who is reportedly “no longer on speaking terms” with Cowell, continued: “That’s all he does is judging. It was a tiny part of my career. For him, it was the focus and he still couldn’t win it.”
His comments prompted laughter from the crowd and, when Rockliffe said: “He wasn’t happy with you, was he?”, Walliams replied: “No.”
However, he said Britain’s Got Talent “was a fun show to do”.
When the recording of his inappropriate comments was made public in 2022, Walliams told The Independent: “I would like to apologise to the people I made disrespectful comments about during breaks in filming for Britain’s Got Talent in 2020. These were private conversations and – like most conversations with friends – were never intended to be shared. Nevertheless, I am sorry.”
Fremantle, while announcing it had reached a settlement with Walliams, issued its own apology, stating: “We are sincerely sorry that his private conversations when a judge on Britain’s Got Talent were published, and the great distress this caused David.
“We have reviewed our production practices on the show to ensure they fully respect the expectations of our talent whilst satisfying the requirements of the show. We have enjoyed a great relationship with David over many years.
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“We thank David for being an important part of the Britain’s Got Talent family and the enduring success of the show and hope to have opportunities to work with him in the future. We are pleased that we have achieved an amicable resolution of this dispute with David.”
Bruno Tonioli replaced Walliams on the show in January 2023. The Independent has contacted Cowell for comment.
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