00:00Chucking them in the bin, drowning them in the sink, and smothering them with what looks like
00:04mayonnaise? These are just some of the ways people across the country are disposing of books written
00:09by David Walliams after the children's author and comedian was named as the celebrity at the
00:13centre of sexual misconduct allegations. A joint investigation by ITV News and The Guardian
00:18revealed that a number of women have accused him of sexually inappropriate behaviour and grooming,
00:23including when they were teenagers, some as young as 15. The former Britain's Got Talent judge has
00:28denied all allegations against him, stating, I am not a sexual predator, I have not broken the law.
00:33But back to the books. Back in December 2025, book publishing company HarperCollins dropped
00:39Walliams following an internal investigation into allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards
00:43junior female staff members. Now, bookshops are quite literally pulling his books from their shelves.
00:49Waterstones said after HarperCollins ceased supply of Walliams' existing books, they're now looking
00:53to return the small number of copies that remain in stock in their shops. Similarly,
00:57Amazon says digital editions of his books were withdrawn after HarperCollins announced they've
01:01stopped publishing David Walliams' catalogue, and physical copies will only remain available until
01:06they run out of stock. The list goes on. T.G. Jones, formerly known as W.H. Smith, said it
01:11was no
01:11longer selling books written by Walliams, and the same goes for the works. But that's not all.
01:16Now, schools and London councils have also advised that public libraries remove the books.
01:21Camden Council said they're committed to making Camden a safer place for women and girls,
01:24to challenging harmful attitudes and promoting healthy relationships, and therefore decided
01:29removing the books was the most appropriate action. Christian charity Oasis, which runs nearly
01:3460 schools across England, advised headteachers that because this will traumatise some children
01:39without doubt if they read his name or see his face, removing Walliams' books is the right
01:44thing to do. But it's not a clean sweep. Kent County Council, led by Reform UK, said there were no
01:49plans
01:49to remove Walliams' books from its libraries because stock decisions were reportedly not made
01:54through blanket bans on individual authors. Lib Dem-led Oxfordshire County Council have also
01:58confirmed that all David Walliams books will remain in council-owned libraries. And the same goes for
02:04Tory-run Buckinghamshire Council, who said,
02:06Our starting point is that books should remain available to readers unless their content is unlawful.
