Schools are removing books by David Walliams from shelves after he was accused of sexual misconduct and abusing his power to groom teenagers as young as 15.
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he → remove → 15
Headteachers say they are withdrawing novels written by the best-selling author to avoid pupils feeling 'traumatised' after hearing reports about his alleged behaviour.
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pupils → say → behaviour
But school leaders want clarity from the Department for Education on whether the books should be withdrawn, given the decision currently rests with individual schools.
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decision → want → schools
Meanwhile public libraries in the likes of Kent, Sussex and Surrey have said they will not be removing the books – while others in London have already put them in storage.
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others → say → storage
Walliams had a hugely successful career as a children's book author, releasing his debut novel The Boy in the Dress, which was illustrated by Quentin Blake in 2008.
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which → have → 2008
Another hit was Gangsta Granny, which was turned into a BBC TV special in 2013, followed by a sequel starring Sheridan Smith in 2022 and later adapted for the stage.
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which → turn → stage
Walliams wrote more than 40 books, and in 2018 they constituted 44 per cent of all sales of HarperCollins children's titles - generating revenue of £100million by 2019.
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they → write → 2019
But Steve Chalke, founder of the Oasis Charitable Trust, which runs 58 schools in England, said he wanted to avoid children becoming upset by seeing the books.
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children → run → books
David Walliams reads his book Gangsta Granny to children at a school in London in 2015
He told BBC Breakfast: 'No child can be protected from hearing about the story about David Walliams.
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child → read → Walliams
It's on the TV, it's on the radio, it's on the front page of newspapers etc and their parents are going to be talking about it.
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parents → go → it
'So when a child wanders into a school and into the library and sees his name or perhaps sees his photo on a book, it can be very traumatising for some children.'
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it → wander → children
Pepe Di'Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, has called on the Government to help schools decide what action to take.
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schools → call → action
He said: 'We'll be talking to colleagues from the Department for Education today to ask for some clarity, some transparency, some advice and guidance, so that headteachers can make sure they are making informed decisions that are part of a national context, that are appropriately based in law, and that they can make sure they're doing the right thing on behalf of young people in schools.'
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they → say → schools
It comes after author Chloe Combi said she was told in 2015 to warn schools that Walliams was 'not an appropriate booking' by someone 'quite senior' in the publishing industry.
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Walliams → come → industry
She spoke to BBC News, saying the woman told her: 'Whatever you do, don't invite David Walliams, and FYI if you are speaking to head teachers or teachers, please inform them that he's not a good booking, not an appropriate booking for a school.'
Ms Combi added: 'I obviously asked why, and to be honest I had already heard quite a lot of rumours because those worlds are quite small and contained.
'
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worlds → speak → rumours
One of the things she said was that there had been real concerns about his behaviour around young female staff.'
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she → say → staff
Meanwhile a former staff member at HarperCollins claimed this week that normal working practices had to be changed around Walliams and young women were not sent on their own to his home.
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women → claim → home
It is alleged he had a sexual relationship with at least one junior employee and pursued another.
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he → allege → another
Walliams has sold more than 60 million copies of his children's books globally, with other titles including Fing – which has been turned into an upcoming movie.
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which → sell → movie
The Australian-made movie will be released in cinemas on January 14 and originally featured a cameo by Walliams, but distributors confirmed this week that he will no longer appear in it.
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he → make → it
Meanwhile libraries are taking different approaches on whether to remove his books, with Kent County Council among those saying they will stay on its shelves for now.
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they → take → shelves
A spokesman for the local authority, which is controlled by Reform UK, said there were 'no plans' to remove Walliams's books because decisions about its stock were 'not made through blanket bans on individual authors'.
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decisions → control → authors
Medway Council insisted that the books 'should remain available to readers unless their content is illegal', while Surrey County Council said decisions on stock were 'based on reader demand, usage and maintaining a relevant, balanced collection'.
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decisions → insist → collection
West Sussex County Council said it would continue to stock books by Walliams, but would not be buying any more titles.
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it → say → titles
Meanwhile a large catalogue of Walliams's books have been taken off library shelves in Camden, north London, and placed into storage.
A Camden Council spokesperson said: 'We are committed to making Camden a safer place for women and girls, to challenging harmful attitudes, and promoting healthy relationships.
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Camden → take → relationships
'Following these allegations, we believe the most appropriate action is to remove these books from display.'
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action → follow → display
The Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals has guidance backing freedom of access to published material unless content is prohibited by law.
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content → have → law
A spokesman for Libraries Connected, which represents and supports public libraries, said: 'Libraries follow established professional and ethical principles around stock availability.
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Libraries → represent → availability
The starting point is that all books should be made available to readers unless the content of those books is illegal.'
Copies of books by David Walliams are pictured on the shelves of a library in London yesterday
In December 2025, Walliams was dropped by HarperCollins which said 'after careful consideration' it would not be publishing any new titles from the award-winning children's author.
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it → make → author
The decision to drop him was made following a media investigation into allegations he had 'harassed' young women.
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he → drop → women
At the time, a statement from HarperCollins said: 'After careful consideration, and under the leadership of its new CEO, HarperCollins UK has decided not to publish any new titles by David Walliams.
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UK → say → Walliams
HarperCollins takes employee wellbeing extremely seriously and has processes in place for reporting and investigating concerns.
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HarperCollins → take → concerns
To respect the privacy of individuals we do not comment on internal matters.
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we → respect → matters
However, a spokesperson for Walliams said he had 'never been informed of any allegations raised against him by HarperCollins'.
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he → say → HarperCollins
Walliams representatives added: 'He was not party to any investigation or given any opportunity to answer questions.
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He → add → questions
David strongly denies that he has behaved inappropriately and is taking legal advice.'
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he → deny → advice
Shortly after being dropped by HarperCollins, Walliams was also dropped from his appearance at the Waterstones Children's Book Festival in Dundee.
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Walliams → drop → Dundee
Theme park Alton Towers permanently closed its World Of David Walliams attraction last week.
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park → close → attraction
The attraction focused on his children's books, with attractions including Gangsta Granny: The Ride, Raj's Bouncy Bottom Burp and The Royal Carousel – as well as Raj's Shop and The Burger Kitchen.
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attractions → focus → Granny
Walliams was named as part of an investigation by the Guardian and ITV News on Tuesday, after he tried to obtain an injunction to prevent the reporting of allegations against him.
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he → name → him
…and 21 more, not listed.
The Aporia
