British comedian and author David Walliams has denied allegations that he groomed young fans and behaved inappropriately towards women in the workplace, following an investigation published Tuesday by the Guardian and ITV News.

The investigation includes accounts from two women who say they first met Walliams when they were 15, as well as allegations concerning his conduct at Britain’s Got Talent and publisher HarperCollins. Most of the women who spoke to the investigation said they were over 18 when they interacted with him.

One woman, identified by the pseudonym Alex, said Walliams contacted her in January 2004 after she gave him samples of her writing at a fan event. She was 15 and he was 32. According to the Guardian, her notes from their first telephone conversation recorded discussion of her schoolwork and ambitions to write comedy.

Alex said their contact later became sexual and that they first had sex when she was 17. She described their three sexual encounters as consensual, but said she now believes he groomed her by exploiting his celebrity status and offers of encouragement.

Walliams’ lawyers told the investigation that he understood Alex to be 18 when she renewed contact. They said he did not recall, and did not believe, that he had asked her to send sexual photographs.

A second woman, given the pseudonym Jade, alleged that Walliams invited her to his home and initiated sexual contact weeks after first contacting her, when she was 15.

The investigation also reported that HarperCollins severed ties with Walliams after concerns about his behaviour over several years, including an allegation of an inappropriate sexual relationship with a junior female employee. The publisher dropped him last year and announced in September that it would no longer publish his back catalogue.

In a letter to the journalists, Walliams denied abusing his position or breaking the law.

“I am not a sexual predator,” he wrote. He said he regretted behaving thoughtlessly towards some people with whom he had casual sexual relationships, but denied abusing the power associated with his fame.

The Guardian reported that an earlier High Court attempt by his lawyers to prevent publication of the allegations was dismissed.

Sources