Comedian Lucy Beaumont revealed she helped journalists investigate claims against David Walliams, fearing her television career is over.
Dressing Room Allegations
Beaumont said a young television worker approached her three years ago after moving to a production featuring the entertainer, alleging that staff members were asked to escort young women to Walliams’ dressing room, as reported by International Business Times UK. The worker believed the girls were over 16 but considered them vulnerable, according to LBC.
Beaumont, who is 43 years old, explained that she was approached by a young person working on their first job in television. According to her account shared with Sky News, the worker confided in her about tasks they were asked to perform, including taking young women to Walliams’ dressing room. Beaumont stated she wanted to help because the worker was completely out of their depth in the television industry, and alleged that a young person involved had signed a non-disclosure agreement preventing them from speaking to friends and family.
Although she never worked with Walliams herself or witnessed any inappropriate behavior firsthand, Beaumont said she became worried about the young women involved and reached out to alleged victims privately. She described finding one of the women in a severely distressed state and attempting to assist with legal fees regarding restrictions on discussing their experiences.
The disclosures followed a three-year joint investigation by ITV News and the Guardian detailing allegations from multiple women dating back to 2003. Walliams unsuccessfully sought a High Court injunction to prevent publication, according to the Mirror. The joint media investigation featured accounts from approximately 30 people describing instances of workplace sexual misconduct and harassment.
Several women accused Walliams of grooming them when they were teenagers, with one individual characterizing her encounter with Walliams at 15 years old as a sexual assault. Additional allegations involved a former HarperCollins employee and inappropriate behavior during his tenure as a judge on Got Talent.
A TV worker confided in comedian Lucy Beaumont that he was asked to take young women to David Walliams' dressing room, she tells @CathyNewman. Beaumont says she later found one of the women and offered help. Sky News has contacted Walliams' representatives about this allegation. pic.twitter.com/sOEbHAqUs7
At the time, he didn’t think there was a process, a way to let people know within the TV company what was happening and how he felt and I was really worried, Beaumont told Metro.
Metropolitan Police Launch Investigation into Alleged Sexual Offences
The Metropolitan Police launched a separate investigation into Walliams over reports of “alleged serious sexual offences” involving a man in his 50s. Detective Superintendent Mike Cagney said that detectives were also proactively reviewing reporting from media investigations.
“Those who have come forward are being supported by specialist officers,” a Metropolitan Police statement said, as Detective Superintendent Mike Cagney encouraged anyone who has experienced a sexual offence to come forward, noting that specialist officers are available to provide support and guidance through the reporting process.
“part of their investigation, detectives are also proactively reviewing that reporting to establish whether there is any evidence of offences,” said The Met.
Walliams has denied all criminal activity and grooming allegations. In a written letter addressed to journalists working on the investigation, Walliams acknowledged that he behaved thoughtlessly toward people he had casual sexual relationships with and failed to take their feelings properly into account, expressing regret for those actions. However, he maintained that a power imbalance, while inevitable when one party is famous, did not mean he abused that power.
Industry Fallout
Beaumont told Yahoo Entertainment that speaking out carried professional risks in an industry lacking formal human resources departments. “The reason high-profile people aren't saying anything is because they lose work, you're seen as, you might be a trouble-causer,” Beaumont told Yahoo Entertainment, noting that individuals who raise concerns are often viewed as troublemakers and can gradually lose work opportunities because people are well-paid and hesitant to jeopardize their positions.
And honestly, I don’t think I’ll work in telly again. I honestly don’t, she said, joking that she might become a pilates teacher instead.
Chat show host Jonathan Ross also addressed a 2004 comedy awards joke referencing Walliams and a 15-year-old, stating he was horrified by the revelations and would not have used the script had he known of actual events.
Ross explained that the joke delivered at the December 2004 British Comedy Awards had been submitted to him by the scriptwriting team, and he had believed the punchline referred to Walliams publicly dating younger women, exaggerated for comic effect.
