You might know him for his long-standing role as a “Britain’s Got Talent”, but there’s more to David Walliams than that. For over two decades, David has appeared in a wide variety of TV shows and theater plays in the UK, on top of being a successful writer of children’s books and having other interesting hobbies, such as practicing extreme sports and being a philanthropist.
While David’s prominence in the UK’s entertainment industry speaks for itself, there’s no denying that his accomplishments have been slightly shadowed by his controversial opinions on sensitive subjects, and derogatory language about people.
So what’s with David Walliams? Why is he so famous and how did his career start? What about the honors he’s received by the Crown and the controversies?
He was born David Edward Williams on 20 August 1971 in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom, to parents Peter and Kathleen Williams, and has a sister is named Julie. During his childhood, David began dressing up with his sister’s help, a hobby which became a fully-fledged passion once he began acting in school, and joining a swimming team.
David and his family lived in Surrey, a south-east county in England, and later moved to attend the University of Bristol, graduating in 1992 with a degree in Drama. David’s beginnings in theater go back to his time in Bristol, mixing with the likes of Matt Lucas, with whom he worked later on TV. At some point, David changed his surname to Walliams because another actor named David Williams had already signed on to the British Actors’ Equity Association.
David’s first credited role on TV was in “Mash and Peas” as Gareth Peas in 1996, and then in the 1999 film “Plunkett & Macleane” as Viscount Bilston.
Starting in the late 1990s, David Walliams appeared in a wide variety of movies and TV shows, and in a variety of comedy series such as “Sir Bernard’s Stately Homes”, “Bang, Bang, It’s Reeves and Mortimer” and “Rock Profile”, the latter in which he played several roles between 1999 and 2009.
David’s definitive rise to fame came with “Little Britain”, a comedy show featuring a wide variety of characters of which David played dozens, alongside his co-star Matt Lucas. The show ended in 2006, but was followed by a couple of special episodes, and also spawned a spin-off entitled “Little Britain USA”, though it was the original show which put David on the radar.
‘I’m bringing my book show to Australia and New Zealand this September & October. I’ll be telling funny stories about my childhood, sharing the inspiration for the stories & acting out some of the characters.
🎟 Pre-sale starts this Wednesday at 12pm local time, sign up now for… pic.twitter.com/LRmtN7Xmbo— David Walliams HQ (@davidwalliams) June 10, 2024
After that, he appeared in an increasing number of comedy shows throughout the 2010s, including “Come Fly With Me”, “Big School”, and “Walliams and Friend”.
David has also played roles in numerous comedy films for the silver screen and TV, such as “Cruise of the Gods”, “Dinner for Schmucks” and “Murder Mystery”, He also voices characters in the movies “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian”, “Marmaduke” and “Pudsey: The Movie”.
Even though David Walliams has worked on dozens of projects, one which has contributed to his fame the most is his work as a judge in “Britain’s Got Talent”. He debuted in the show in 2012, joining Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden, and Alesha Dixon in the then-newly established four-judges format of the show.
David stuck with “Britain’s Got Talent” for ten seasons, before announcing his exit in 2022 when some pejorative comments he made about a contestant were revealed to the general public. As The Guardian reported at the time, Walliams was caught making sexual and disrespectful remarks about contestants auditioning for “Britain’s Got Talent”.
The comments were caught by the private microphones given to judges to talk among themselves, inevitably causing a huge backlash once they were released to the public. David apologized, affirming that it was a ‘conversation with friends’ and not meant to be heard by the general public. The show’s network executive didn’t condone his behavior either, stating that the people involved with the controversy would be ‘reminded of their responsibilities’ with the show.
Not long after that, David stepped out of the show for good, to be replaced by Bruno Tonioli.
While David’s pejorative remarks in “Britain’s Got Talent” caused a huge uproar, it wasn’t the first time in his career that he received backlash for inappropriate behavior and words.
One of the most famous controversies David Walliams has been involved with was during his time with “Little Britain”, especially when the sketch show “Little Britain Live” was on tour, and David often performed a suggestive sketch involving members of the public entitled “Hide the Sausage”. Besides grapplingwith and trying to undress people, David was also criticized for his portrayal of a predatory homosexual character.
David’s performance during “Little Britain Live” was also described as ‘disturbing’, as it sometimes involved minors. His “Hide the Sausage” performance caused controversy numerous times, once leading to the exposure of actor Jeremy Edwards’ genitals and musician Mark Ronson’s buttocks.
David was also strongly criticized for making sexual remarks about Harry Styles when the singer was a minor, and dressing up as North Korea’s ruler Kim Jong-un for a Halloween party. However, one of his most recent controversies was the backlash over his “Little Britain’s” sketches, which have been described as racist, classist and derogatory, eventually causing the cancellation of the show on several online streaming platforms.
Despite the huge backlash David Walliams has faced over the years for diverse reasons, his career remains quite stable. When it comes to his writing, David has experienced worldwide success, having his books translated into dozens of languages while selling millions of copies since his first children’s book came out in 2008.
Some of his most successful titles include “The Boy In The Dress”, “Mr. Stink” and “Gangsta Granny”, all of which have been adapted into short movies. David’s writing has won him acclaimed awards such as People’s Book Prizes and Red House Children’s Book Awards, on top of being compared to Roald Dahl, the famous children’s books author who sold over 300 million copies of his works.
As an admirer of Dahl himself, David has affirmed that the author balanced ‘the humour and scary elements’ of his works successfully.
Besides writing and acting, David is known for his contributions to several charity organizations such as the BBC’s Sport Relief, for which he’s raised funds by swimming the Straits of Gibraltar and the English Channel, among other popular locations.
All in all, there’s no denying that David Walliam is a controversial figure in the entertainment industry, yet he’s also very interesting and impossible to ignore.