Television executives are facing the prospect of new legal duties to protect young women from predatory figures in entertainment, following the scandals involving David Walliams and Russell Brand.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy is due to meet senior broadcasters next week after claims that allegations about Walliams’ alleged conduct towards young women had, like those surrounding Brand, become an “open secret” within the industry.
Critics say both men had acquired such influence and commercial value that concerns about their behaviour were allowed to go unchallenged.
Walliams, the 55-year-old children’s author and television personality, denies claims that he groomed schoolgirls, sexually assaulted a 15-year-old or repeatedly pursued teenagers for sex. He has said he is “not a sexual predator”.
Ms Nandy has promised to “draw a line in the sand” when she meets entertainment industry leaders, warning that legislation could follow if broadcasters fail to improve their safeguarding procedures.
She said: “A decade and a half on from the revelations about Jimmy Savile, and ten years on from the MeToo movement, we must finally take meaningful steps to end abuse and harassment.”
Russell Brand and David Walliams pictured together at the British Comedy Awards in London in December 2006
Lisa Nandy is set to meet broadcasters after claims that allegations about Walliams’ alleged conduct, like those involving Brand, were an “open secret” in the industry
Downing Street described the allegations concerning Walliams as “deeply troubling”, adding that they pointed to “a pattern of behaviour that needs to change”.
Walliams, a former Britain’s Got Talent judge, is alleged to have used his celebrity status to invite young women to his dressing room and to his £3.5million home in north London.
Several teenagers and young women made allegations of sexual misconduct during an investigation by The Guardian and ITV News.
Walliams reportedly threatened to take his own life if the allegations were published, but was unsuccessful in obtaining a court injunction to prevent the Press from identifying him.
The comedian and author is understood to be receiving treatment in a psychiatric hospital, days after Brand was sentenced to more than ten years in prison for rape and sexual offences.
Chatshow presenter Jonathan Ross, who had known both men, apologised for a crude joke made at the 2004 comedy awards suggesting that a 15-year-old was “probably going home” with Walliams.
Mr Ross said he was “horrified by the revelations about David Walliams and the crimes of Russell Brand”.
He said he had previously been friends with both men, but added: “During that period I was genuinely unaware of their conduct.”
A 2003 photograph shows Mr Ross alongside Walliams and one of the women who has made allegations. Lilly Creightmore was 18 when Walliams invited her to stay at his home.
Speaking to Newsnight, she said: “One night I think he put his head in my lap and sort of said, ‘Are you sure you don’t want to come and sleep in my bed with me?’ I had an inner strength, like, ‘No’.”
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Jonathan Ross, pictured yesterday, apologised for a crude joke at the 2004 comedy awards suggesting a 15-year-old was “probably going home” with Walliams
Comedian Lucy Beaumont, one of the investigation’s whistleblowers, said a young television worker told her that his role was to take young girls to Walliams’ dressing room.
She said the girls were aged over 16, but were “working-class girls” and that some had never visited London before.
“I was worried these girls were young,” she said. “I tried to contact some of them to ask if they were all right.”
One woman was reportedly “in a really bad way” and had allegedly been advised by Walliams’ lawyers to sign a non-disclosure agreement, or NDA, preventing her from speaking out.
Ms Beaumont said the NDA, imposed on someone who she believed had been groomed as a child, prevented the woman from discussing the matter with her family or a therapist.
Hi, I’m Alex Matthews, Editor of The Crime Desk.
Russell Brand has been convicted of rape and three sexual assaults. Our reporters Caroline Cheetham and Liz Hull attended every day of the trial. They spoke to Detective Inspector Laura Nelson about why the women who accused Brand in the documentary were not part of his rape trial.
Television agent Dermot McNamara said he had alerted “authorities and broadcasters” after a client, who was 16 when she was taken backstage at Britain’s Got Talent, was invited to Walliams’ home, where she allegedly experienced “inappropriate behaviour”.
Mr McNamara said he reported the alleged incident, said to have occurred about ten years ago, but no action followed.
Lou Teasdale, a former Britain’s Got Talent make-up artist, claimed it was “standard protocol” for young women to sign NDAs and surrender their phones before being left alone with high-profile men.
HarperCollins, which has sold more than 60million copies of Walliams’ books, ended its relationship with him a year ago following claims that he harassed female employees. Walliams denies those allegations.
Walliams has rejected all the accusations. His lawyers said he had never groomed young women or had sexual relations with underage girls.
ITV said Fremantle, the company that produces Britain’s Got Talent, had confirmed that “no complaint has ever been made to them about David Walliams”. The broadcaster added: “We are completely committed at ITV to creating an environment where everyone is treated with respect.”
Equalities Minister Bridget Phillipson said the Government should tighten restrictions on NDAs and consider outlawing their use in some circumstances.
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