British publisher, HarperCollins UK, announced that they have dropped David Walliams, following allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards young women. Walliams had been a big name for the publisher with his best-selling children’s books which have sold more than 60 million copies worldwide but the publishers have made the decision not to release any new titles from him.
A spokesperson for HarperCollins said that the decision came “after careful consideration, and under the leadership of its new CEO”. HarperCollins UK appointed Kate Elton as its new chief executive in October 2025.
HarperCollins did not confirm the reason for its decision. The Telegraph reports that the announcement follows an investigation into the allegations made against Walliams. He was reportedly the subject of complaints of harassment against junior female staff at HarperCollins UK.
A spokesperson for Walliams denied inappropriate behaviour, saying that he had “never been informed of any allegations raised against him” by his publisher.
The publisher said that it takes employee wellbeing “extremely seriously” with “processes in place for reporting and investigating concerns”.
“To respect the privacy of individuals we do not comment on internal matters.”
This is not the first time Walliams has faced controversies. Audiences at a taping of Would I Lie To You?, recorded this summer, alleged that he appeared to make two Nazi salutes during the recording of the BBC comedy panel show. At the time, the BBC said it was “completely unacceptable” and the segment would not be aired. The episode with Williams in will air on Boxing Day this year, with a spokesperson for the BBC saying: “While we’re not making any changes to the festive schedules, we have no future projects directly involving David Walliams.”
In 2022, Williams also apologised and admitted to making “disrespectful comments” about two Britain’s Got Talent contestants during a break in filming. He left the programme that year and sued the production company for leaking the remarks, reaching a settlement with them in 2023.
Williams’ books themselves have not been without criticism either with some readers and people within the publishing industry calling out his harmful depiction of minorities. This included a story about a Chinese boy, featured in The World’s Worst Children, which faced claims that it contained harmful stereotypes. Podcaster, Georgie Ma, complained the book, was “normalising jokes on minorities from a young age”. The story was removed from the new edition of the book, published in 2022.
