Sean Lock is being remembered for challenging both Russell Brand and David Walliams as scrutiny grows over what the British television industry knew about allegations concerning the pair during the early 2000s.
The comedian, who died from cancer in 2021, publicly confronted both entertainers while they were enjoying considerable success and industry support.
During a 2014 episode of Channel 4’s 8 Out of 10 Cats, Lock criticised Brand—who was jailed on Monday for raping one woman and sexually assaulting three others—describing him as “self-serving”.
Lock said: “Probably the reason I hate him so much is that I am a dad, and I have this fear that one day my daughters will bring something like that home. And he will come in and go, ‘Oh, such pleasure to be in your charming abode.’”
Five years earlier, on the same panel show, Lock reacted with visible disapproval to a disturbing joke made by Walliams shortly after Michael Jackson’s death. Jackson had admitted sharing his bed with children.
After trying to attract the host’s attention, Walliams asked: “Have you heard Michael Jackson is dead?” He then said: “If it is wrong to share your bed with 13-year-old boys then lock me up and throw away the key.”
Lock stared into the distance, appearing deeply unimpressed, while some members of the audience laughed.
The controversy surrounding Walliams continued as broadcasters faced criticism over claims that they failed to act on allegations that he groomed teenage girls during the height of his career.
It comes as:
- Comedian Lucy Beaumont said she was among the people who raised concerns about Walliams;
- Jonathan Ross said he was “horrified” by allegations involving his former friend;
- A former model claimed she was pressured to share a bed with Walliams;
- Walliams denied the allegations and rejected the description of himself as a “sexual predator”.
Sean Lock appeared visibly unimpressed as Walliams delivered the disturbing joke
Walliams pictured making the controversial remark about sharing a bed with 13-year-old boys
Lock said he “hated” Russell Brand because he feared his daughters might “bring something like that home”
In his 2014 criticism of Brand, Lock attacked what he saw as the comedian’s hypocrisy and “self-serving” attitude after Brand urged people not to vote.
He said Brand had repeatedly changed his position, moving from telling people to stay away from polling stations to asking who they should vote for.
Lock joked that Brand’s argument ultimately amounted to the familiar complaint: “Politicians. What are they like? How did that lot get in?”
Mel C, who was a guest on Lock’s team, defended Brand’s political views and questioned how change could happen unless people stopped complaining and acted together.
Lock replied that people “get the politicians they deserve” because they fail to engage with politics or take an interest in the political process.
He then delivered a profanity-laden criticism of Brand, calling his message to disengaged voters “moronic, self-serving” and pathetic attention-seeking.
Fellow panellist David O’Doherty urged viewers to “cut Brand some slack”, saying the political climate at the time was poor and needed people to take more radical action.
Following renewed attention on Brand, users online praised Lock for having “seen through him straight away”.
Lock has also been praised for his response to Walliams’s tasteless 2009 joke, made years before allegations against the comedian were reported in the press.
Television agent Dermot McNamara said he reported allegations of “inappropriate behaviour” involving Walliams to authorities and broadcasters at the time.
However, he claimed no effective action followed and that Walliams remained on television for “many, many years”, continuing to work around young people.
McNamara represented a person who was allegedly groomed by the former Britain’s Got Talent judge, who has been accused of sexual misconduct and abusing his position.
Another woman described an alleged encounter with Walliams at the age of 15 as a “sexual assault”, while others accused him of grooming them as teenagers.
Speaking to BBC Newsnight, McNamara said his former client first met Walliams when she was 16. He alleged that Walliams followed her on social media, invited her to Britain’s Got Talent screenings and introduced her to judges including Amanda Holden and Alesha Dixon.
He said she was later invited, alongside another girl, to Walliams’s home, where she felt inappropriate behaviour took place.
McNamara said the experience had a “profound effect” on her mental health and that she found it difficult to see Walliams continuing to receive work, appear in public life, raise money for charity and have access to schools and children through his books.
Walliams, who has denied wrongdoing, pictured in London last December
Dermot McNamara said he reported allegations involving Walliams to authorities and broadcasters
He said the culture surrounding the allegations had been one in which people were frightened to speak out, adding that this had affected the women involved.
Asked by presenter Victoria Derbyshire whether he had reported the allegations, McNamara replied: “I reported it to authorities and broadcasters.”
When asked whether anything happened, he said: “Not that I’m aware of.” He added that Walliams remained on television and continued to be involved with young people.
The date of the allegations was not disclosed. Walliams was a judge on Britain’s Got Talent from 2012 to 2022.
Fremantle UK, which produces the programme, said it was “disturbed and concerned” by the serious allegations but said no complaint about Walliams had been made directly to the company.
Walliams denies all wrongdoing and rejects the allegations against him.
In a letter understood to have been sent to journalists at ITV News and The Guardian, Walliams denied being a “sexual predator”.
He acknowledged that he had behaved thoughtlessly at times and regretted failing to take people’s feelings properly into account, but insisted he had not broken the law.
The letter said: “Whilst a power imbalance is inevitable when one party is famous, abusing that power is something else entirely and it is something that I never did.”
Lucy Beaumont said the television industry needed clearer procedures for raising safeguarding concerns. She said she was among those who spoke to The Guardian about allegations involving Walliams.
Beaumont said she became concerned after hearing that Walliams was hosting teenage girls in his dressing room while working on a television programme.
Appearing on Sky News’ The Cathy Newman Show, she said she wanted to protect young women working in television.
Beaumont said a young person on their first television job had later confided in her about conduct involving Walliams that caused concern.
She said the person had been asked to take girls who were “definitely” over 16 to Walliams’s dressing room and felt they were vulnerable.
According to Beaumont, the person did not believe there was a clear process for reporting concerns within the production company.
She said she had done what she could privately, adding that rumours involving anyone in the industry should be taken seriously, even when the conduct described might not clearly be illegal.
Beaumont said she was one of the whistleblowers who provided information to The Guardian.
She criticised the lack of a formal duty-of-care system in television, saying concerns could “slip through the net” when people do not know how or where to report them.
Beaumont stressed that she had never worked with Walliams or personally witnessed inappropriate behaviour, but said she was worried because the girls involved were young.
She also said she had contacted an alleged victim who appeared to be in a very difficult state, although the woman declined her offer of support.
Lilly Creightmore told Newsnight that she was angry about Walliams’s alleged behaviour
Beaumont said she did not know whether the allegations were true but wanted to ensure the woman received help.
She said speaking publicly could damage the careers of people in the industry because they risked being labelled troublemakers and losing work.
Beaumont began her comedy career in 2009 and has frequently criticised misogyny, sexism and inappropriate behaviour by men in the UK comedy industry.
She has previously spoken about claims that women were not believed when they raised concerns about predatory behaviour.
Walliams had not responded to reports naming him as the subject of the allegations.
Walliams unsuccessfully sought an injunction to prevent publication of the allegations, citing concerns about the effect the reports could have on him following two previous suicide attempts.
Mr Justice Nicklin rejected the application, saying an injunction would be an “exceptionally serious interference” with freedom of expression.
The Metropolitan Police said it had contacted The Guardian and ITV News to ensure potential victims knew how to report any criminal allegations.
Several sources alleged inappropriate behaviour involving women at Britain’s Got Talent and at publisher HarperCollins, which ended its relationship with Walliams last year.
HarperCollins UK said it had previously terminated its publishing relationship with Walliams and that the safety of its people was extremely important.
Independent Talent Group also dropped Walliams, while the BBC began removing some of his programmes, including Little Britain, from iPlayer.
Walliams’s Labour Party membership was suspended, and Downing Street described the allegations as “deeply troubling”.
Jonathan Ross said he was “horrified” by the allegations involving Walliams and by Brand’s crimes, insisting he had been genuinely unaware of their conduct while he was friendly with both men.
Ross made the statement after footage resurfaced of him joking about Walliams and 15-year-olds at the 2004 British Comedy Awards.
He said: “I am as horrified by the revelations about David Walliams and the crimes of Russell Brand as the rest of the nation. My thoughts are with the many, many women who have bravely come forward.”
Ross has also faced questions over his past association with Brand, who was jailed on Monday for ten and a half years for raping one woman and sexually assaulting three others.
The pair appeared together on several television programmes and on Brand’s BBC Radio 2 show in 2008, when they became involved in the controversy known as “Sachsgate”.
The scandal followed a voicemail left for actor Andrew Sachs, the grandfather of Georgina Baillie, containing explicit comments about Brand’s relationship with her.
Ross said the resurfaced Comedy Awards joke had been supplied by the programme’s script team. He said he understood it as an exaggerated reference to Walliams having publicly dated younger women, rather than a reference to real events.
He described the joke as tasteless and said he would not make it today. Ross added that, had he suspected it referred to actual events, he would have refused to deliver it and reconsidered his personal and professional relationship with Walliams.
The reported allegations include Jade’s account of alleged sexual assault and grooming after meeting Walliams in 2007, when she was 15 and he was 36.
Alex also alleged that Walliams groomed her and that they were having sex by the time she was 17.
Ella alleged that Walliams tried to kiss her after they met at a party when she was 19 and he was 36.
Creightmore said she was angry about what she described as a pattern of older men abusing positions of power and pressuring young people.
She said that, after a troubled period at home, she stayed at Walliams’s flat and slept on the sofa. She alleged that he repeatedly asked her to sleep in his bed.
Creightmore told Newsnight: “I felt instantly pressured to share a bed with him. In the evenings, he would sit with me and stroke my leg.”
David Walliams, Anthony McPartlin, Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden, Alesha Dixon and Declan Donnelly at a 2017 Britain’s Got Talent photocall; no allegations have been made against the other BGT stars pictured
She alleged that Walliams once put his head in her lap and asked whether she was sure she did not want to sleep in his bed. She said she felt manipulated and was not attracted to him.
I’m Katie Hind, and when you hear my stories about Walliams, you’ll understand why I am relieved he has been unmasked.
In 2015, Walliams befriended a young, star-struck fan. A year later, she received a disturbing letter from his celebrity law firm. Its effect was clear from her trembling hands and distressed expression. I can now tell her full story.
Here I share one alleged victim’s experience.
Creightmore said she believed the culture of older men abusing positions of power had to end.
Lawyers for Walliams said he regarded Creightmore as a close friend and was mortified that she believed he had groomed her. He denies targeting her because she was young or vulnerable and insists he did nothing inappropriate.
Creightmore said she first noticed Walliams in London in 2002, claiming he would stare at her when they encountered each other.
She said he had also seen her on the Channel 4 reality programme Model Behaviour when she was 16.
Later, she attended a recording of Little Britain with her mother. She claimed Walliams repeatedly stared at her during the recording.
Months later, she received a letter from Walliams after he had seen her at an Agent Provocateur event. He wrote that he had been “enraptured” when he saw her and asked to take her out.
Creightmore said she felt confused and uncomfortable but was also flattered because she was a fan of his comedy. She agreed to dinner while making clear that she was seeing someone and did not want a romantic relationship.
She said Walliams invited her to events and introduced her to comedy friends before allegedly offering her a place to live in his flat.
David Walliams and Matt Lucas performing during the Little Britain live tour in 2005
Creightmore said she discovered there was no spare bed when she arrived and immediately felt pressured to share his bed. She said she refused his requests for sex.
According to Creightmore, Walliams became moody, rude and cold when he did not get what he wanted. She eventually left because she no longer felt welcome or safe.
She said her experience was one part of what she believed was a much wider pattern of inappropriate and predatory behaviour.
Walliams strongly denies every allegation, rejects any suggestion of criminal conduct and says he has never groomed young women.
He also denies paying for a junior Britain’s Got Talent employee’s silence after a man identified as Mark claimed he received £300 from Walliams after entering his dressing room and seeing two “very young people” there while Walliams was wearing only a towel.
A former HarperCollins employee said working practices were changed around Walliams and young women were not sent alone to his home.
The reports also contain an allegation that he had a sexual relationship with at least one junior employee and pursued another.
Walliams has sold more than 60 million children’s books worldwide, including The Boy in the Dress, Fing and Gangsta Granny.
Gangsta Granny was adapted into a BBC special in 2013, followed by a 2022 sequel starring Sheridan Smith.
HarperCollins ended its relationship with Walliams in December 2025 after an investigation into allegations that he had harassed young women. Walliams denied those allegations.
Walliams was married to Dutch model Lara Stone, who is 12 years younger, from 2010 to 2015
Earlier this month, Alton Towers permanently closed its World of David Walliams attraction, which featured rides based on his books.
Walliams joined the Britain’s Got Talent judging panel in 2012 and left in 2022 after apologising for disrespectful comments about contestants made during filming breaks at the London Palladium in January 2020.
Fremantle apologised and reached an “amicable resolution” with Walliams in 2023 after the comments were leaked.
An ITV spokesman said the broadcaster was sorry to hear about the concerns raised. ITV said Fremantle, as the independent producer, was responsible for the day-to-day running of the programme and its duty of care.
ITV said it expected the highest standards from production companies and should be notified whenever safeguarding concerns arose.
Fremantle UK said it was “disturbed and concerned” by the allegations. The company said Walliams had not been a judge on Britain’s Got Talent for more than four years and that no complaint about his behaviour had been made to Fremantle during or after his time on the show.
The company encouraged anyone who believed they had experienced wrongdoing on a Fremantle production to come forward, saying complaints would be treated seriously and that protecting employees, freelancers, contributors and fans remained its priority.
Syco Entertainment, which created Britain’s Got Talent, said it had no knowledge of the allegations and had not been told about them at the time.
The BBC said the allegations were serious and that it was reviewing material featuring or written by Walliams. It said some programmes, including Little Britain, were being removed while the review continued.