Simon Cowell admitted he has spoken to David Walliams since he quit Britain's Got Talent. The new series kicked off last night (Saturday) without Walliams, who left the show after a leaked transcript from auditions showed he was making derogatory comments towards acts when they were out of earshot.
Strictly Come Dancing Legend Bruno Tonioli replaced Walliams as a judge on the talent show, and Simon revealed he told Walliams at the time that his comments were "unacceptable", Liverpool Echo reports.
He said: "It's not the ethos of the show. I said at the time, these comments were completely unacceptable. I hadn't heard them before and it was upsetting.
Read next: Rylan tells fans what he will do next after quitting Strictly role
"But from where I sat, this wasn't something I believe that was constant. Most of the time he seemed very respectful.
"We did say to the two producers you have to make the final decision. Because I am an executive producer, but they're more hands-on. And in the end, it was their decision. Obviously, everyone had some input. The network, Fremantle, all of us."
Simon spoke to David shortly after the controversy but hopes to move on from the subject, the Mirror reported. Discussing their chat, Simon said: "We had a conversation, but he owned what he said. He wasn't proud of what he said. It's not something I would ever condone."
Bruno rounds out the panel, joining Simon, Amanda Holden, and Alesha Dixon as a new, permanent fixture. Speaking about his new role, Bruno said: "Honestly, I’ve had such a good time!. It’s completely new for me, I told Simon, ‘I never watched the show before’. But I never watch anything I’m in, I never even watched Strictly or Dancing with the Stars!
“This is like live theatre. It’s a proper variety show like we used to get – and I always loved that,” he follows, his voice going due to “screaming for six hours every day. Let me tell you, some of the talent we’ve seen during auditions… absolutely incredible.
“It feels more homegrown [the talent, this year],” says Holden, 52, who, like Cowell, has been a part of the show since the beginning. “It feels like stuff people would be doing in their bedrooms and less professionals this year, but the standard is still exceptionally high.”
Ready to explore more? Follow Curiously on TikTok , Instagram , Facebook and Twitter .
Up Next:
