David Walliams dropped by publisher after allegations of inappropriate behaviour

David Walliams has been dropped by his publisher HarperCollins UK following allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards women.

A spokesperson for the company said it had decided not to release any new titles by Walliams "after careful consideration, and under the leadership of its new CEO". "HarperCollins takes employee well-being extremely seriously and has processes in place for reporting and investigating concerns," they added.

"To respect the privacy of individuals, we do not comment on internal matters." In a statement later on Friday, a spokesperson for the comedian and children's author said: "David has never been informed of any allegations raised against him by HarperCollins. "He was not party to any investigation or given any opportunity to answer questions.

David strongly denies that he has behaved inappropriately and is taking legal advice." It follows a report from The Telegraph that Walliams was dropped after an investigation into allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards young women. The 54-year-old, who shot to fame with the BBC sketch show Little Britain, is one of the country's best-selling children's writers.

He has written more than 40 books, which have sold more than 60 million copies worldwide and been translated into 55 languages, according to his website. His first children's book, The Boy in the Dress, was published by HarperCollins in 2008, and he was awarded an OBE in 2017 for services to charity and the arts.

Walliams is also known for Come Fly With Me, another BBC sketch show, and was formerly part of the judging panel for ITV's Britain's Got Talent. He left the show in 2022 after a recording of him making disparaging comments about contestants was leaked.

The remarks were understood to have been both derogatory and sexually explicit, referring to one contestant as a "c***" and saying of another: "She thinks you want to f*** her, but you don't". Walliams later released a statement apologising for the "disrespectful comments" and saying they were private conversations that were never meant to be shared.

HarperCollins UK announced in October that it had appointed Kate Elton as its new chief executive, following the departure of former boss Charlie Redmayne..