LONDON — November 10, 2026. Comedian, television personality and children’s author David Walliams was identified Tuesday as the person who unsuccessfully sought a High Court injunction to stop a joint investigation by The Guardian and ITV News from being published.
The reporting sets out allegations from women who say Walliams used his celebrity status to pursue them when they were young, including two who say they first met him when they were 15. Walliams denies wrongdoing and denies having broken the law. The allegations have not been proved in a criminal trial.
The legal development
Mr Justice Nicklin rejected the application on November 3. Walliams’ lawyers confirmed that he would not appeal by the November 9 deadline, allowing his identity and the reporting to be made public November 10. The ruling dealt with publication rights, not whether the allegations were true.
Walliams had sought restrictions on publication based on an asserted severe risk to his mental health. The judge took the medical evidence seriously while deciding that the proposed injunction would impose an exceptionally serious interference with expression and reporting on matters of substantial public interest. The court noted protective treatment arrangements already in place.
What the journalists reported
The joint investigation, which the outlets say took three years, drew on interviews and documentary evidence, including messages and contemporaneous material. Women described alleged experiences involving personal approaches and workplace conduct. The Guardian investigation and ITV’s account of the legal process provide fuller descriptions and Walliams’ response.
Walliams wrote to the journalists that he was not a sexual predator and said he had never abused his position. His lawyers also denied allegations of harassment and workplace misconduct.
Why the injunction matters
The decision highlights the legal tension between personal rights, serious health risks, the public’s interest in knowing about alleged abuses of power and the rights of sources to tell their stories. Refusal to stop a story is not a judicial endorsement of every allegation in that story.
Sources: ITV News, November 10; The Guardian’s original investigation; Associated Press.