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11 months ago
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David Walliams has settled his lawsuit against Fremantle, the makers of Britain’s Got Talent, after being forced out of the show following the publication of remarks he made while judging.
The 52-year-old stepped down as a judge on the ITV show last November after a recording of him making offensive comments about contestants was leaked.
He has now agreed to a settlement which is said to be ‘way under’ the £10 million which he was seeking. MailOnline understands that the sum is comfortably less than £5 million.
Fremantle had to accept that their security procedures had failed which allowed Walliams’ comments to be leaked to the Guardian, hence the decision to settle.
Sources indicate that many of his other arguments ‘failed’ leading to a relatively modest settlement which was equivalent to around a year’s salary - roughly £1million.
David Walliams has settled his lawsuit against Fremantle, the makers of Britain’s Got Talent
Secret talks were held last week shortly after the comedian kicked off legal proceedings alleging he was 'spied on' during his ten years on the show
A Freemantle spokesperson said: 'We are pleased that we have achieved an amicable resolution of this dispute with David. We are sincerely sorry that his private conversations when a judge on Britain’s Got Talent were published, and the great distress this caused David.
'We have reviewed our production practices on the show to ensure they fully respect the expectations of our talent whilst satisfying the requirements of the show. We have enjoyed a great relationship with David over many years.
'We thank David for being an important part of the Britain’s Got Talent family and the enduring success of the show and hope to have opportunities to work with him in the future.'
However some remain unsure of Walliams will ever work with Britain's Got Talent again.
A source told The Mirror: 'Never say never in showbiz but it's going to take a lot of water under the bridge for that to happen.
'This has left a bad taste in a lot of people’s mouths.'
Secret talks were held last week shortly after the comedian kicked off legal proceedings alleging he was 'spied on' during his ten years on the show, The Sun on Sunday reported.
A source told the publication that last week's meeting ended with a 'willingness on both sides to avoid going to court.
The former judge stepped down from the ITV show last November after a recording of him making offensive comments about contestants was leaked.
'The specific details of the talks are being kept secret for obvious reasons but an agreement is not far off.'
The former Little Britain star is said to have claimed in court documents that producers 'recorded, transcribed and retained' all his conversations during his decade-long stint and that he had no idea his microphone was 'kept on and recording' throughout the entire day of filming.
Walliams, who is said seeking up to £10million, alleges 1,700 hours of audio recordings were collected, including a personal chat with his fellow judges Alesha Dixon, Simon Cowell and Amanda Holden about the impact of his father's death.
He also has said he battled severe depression since the sacking and has had 'active suicidal thoughts'.
In a statement on Friday, November 24, Fremantle said they were 'saddened' by the legal action and 'remain open to resolve this matter amicably'.
The star had been recorded on a hot mic during an audition show at the London Palladium calling an elderly contestant a 'c***' three times when they left the stage.
He also claimed another contestant would think he wanted to 'f***' her. As she walked on stage he muttered: 'She's like the slightly boring girl you meet in the pub that thinks you want to f*** them, but you don't...
The former Little Britain star is said to have claimed in court documents that producers 'recorded, transcribed and retained' all his conversations during his decade-long stint
In the high court documents, which were released last month, his lawyers argued that the comments were part of a private conversation not intended for broadcast
'It's the last thing on your mind, but she's like: 'Yep, I bet you do!' 'No I don't!' I had a bit of a boner, but now it's going, it's now shrivelled up inside my body.' Walliams had apologised publicly when the recordings were first published by The Guardian last year.
In the high court documents, which were released last month, his lawyers argued that the comments were part of a private conversation not intended for broadcast. The lawyers for Thames TV, the production company behind BGT agreed.
The court documents also showed that he received a letter from the Guardian about his leaked audio last year, months before he was offered a new contract from BGT.
Walliams claimed the publication's letter was the first time he realised Fremantle was 'collecting and retaining vastly more of his personal data than he had been given to understand'.
However, a source from Fremantle said the show's judges were aware they were always being recorded, adding to the publication: 'It seems somewhat bizarre, as it was widely reported in 2018 that all the comments judges made at the desk were going to be recorded, even when they weren't speaking to contestants.'
Walliams's lawyers say he accepted the job offer 18 days after The Guardian's November 10 2022 article was published.
However, Fremantle withdrew the offer on December, 14, which Walliams claimed was 'in response to the publication' of the article.
A Fremantle spokesperson said: 'We had a long and productive relationship with David and so are surprised and saddened by this legal action.
'For our part, we remain available and open to dialogue to resolve this matter amicably.
'However, in the interim, we will examine the various allegations and are prepared to robustly defend ourselves if necessary.'
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