Amanda Holden talks heartbreak over David Walliams’ Britain’s Got Talent exit… as comedian sues show as bosses claim he was ‘warned about his behaviour’ over contestant’s comments

Amanda Holden has opened up about her sadness at David Williams’ departure from Britain’s Got Talent, insisting she and fellow judge Alesha Dixon still “love” the comedian.

Funnyman David, 52, has decided to quit the ITV talent show after being forced to apologize for describing an older contestant as a ‘s***’ in 2022.

He is now suing his former bosses at the show and has reportedly accused London-based Fremantle, which produces the reality series, of unlawful data protection breaches.

And while Amanda, 52, hints that David and his former boss Simon Cowell may not be on the best of terms, she insists he still holds a special place in her heart.

She said Sun: ‘We love David. Well, Alesha and I love David.

She misses her pal: Amanda Holden, 52, opened up about her sadness at David Walliams’ departure from Britain’s Got Talent (pictured this month)

Gone: Funnyman David, 52, has decided to quit the ITV talent show after being forced to apologize for describing an older contestant as a ‘s***’ in 2022 (pictured this month)

“It was sad when he left.” I am in contact with him. Always. We always support David.’

“Simon does so much behind the scenes that nobody knows about.” He is encouraging. He has the best sense of humor.

It comes after Britain’s Got Talent insiders said David was ‘warned about his behaviour’ before his lewd remarks about contestants on the show were made public – resulting in his exit.

According to court documents, bosses ‘knew of his controversial comments about contestants when they offered him the £1m contact’ – but insiders dismissed the claims

A BGT source told MailOnline: ‘What David said was completely unacceptable and he has been warned about his behaviour.

“This whole order is frankly bizarre – it contains a number of claims that seem outlandish, but there was certainly no contract ready to be signed and sealed.”

A Fremantle source said Guardian that the show’s judges were aware that their conversations were being recorded, adding: ‘It seems a bit bizarre, as it was widely reported in 2018 that any comments the judges made at the table would be recorded, even when they weren’t talking to the contestants.’

A Fremantle spokesman previously said: “We have had a long and productive relationship with David and are therefore surprised and saddened by this legal action.”

Judges: While Amanda hints that David and his former boss Simon Cowell may not be on the best of terms, she insists he still holds a special place in her own and Alesha Dixon’s hearts (LR: Britain’s Got Talent judges David, Simon, Amanda and Aleši pictures in January last year)

“For our part, we remain available and open to dialogue in order to resolve this issue in an amicable manner.” However, in the meantime we will investigate the various allegations and are prepared to defend ourselves vigorously if necessary.’

It comes after David’s doctor revealed the terrifying toll BGT took on the former judge.

In September, 10 months after leaving his £1.5million-a-year judging role, it was revealed that David is suing his former bosses at Britain’s Got Talent and is seeking significant damages.

The court documents he saw Sun have now revealed the worrying impact the ordeal has had on David’s mental health as he leaves the judges’ panel after 10 years on the job.

His psychiatrist, Dr. Mark Collins, wrote that the TV star suffered from suicidal thoughts, and documents show that he suffered from a mental breakdown, the paper said.

The doctor increased the doses of medication for anxiety, insomnia and depression as his symptoms worsened, it said.

The documents reportedly read: ‘He is plagued by uncontrollable negative thoughts, including active suicidal thoughts.’

The newspaper also revealed that Walliams was taking a host of medications, including escitalopram (for depression), alprazolam (also known as Xanax, for anxiety) and quetiapine (for insomnia).

Warning: Britain’s Got Talent insiders say Davids was ‘warned about his behaviour’ before his lewd remarks about contestants on the show went public – resulting in his exit

Collins reportedly said in the report that the leaking of the transcripts “had a profound, serious and, at times, very troubling effect on his mental health,” with David suffering from sleep problems and negative thoughts.

Fremantle told The Sun: “We have had a long and productive relationship with David and are therefore surprised and saddened by this legal action.

“For our part, we remain available and open to dialogue in order to resolve this issue in an amicable manner.”

“However, in the meantime we will investigate the various allegations and are prepared to defend ourselves vigorously if necessary.”

High Court court proceedings reportedly see David accuse Fremantle of recording, transcribing and retaining private conversations for ten years.

He reportedly claimed that his microphone was on and recorded throughout the day during filming, including when he went to the bathroom.

Fremantle is said to have produced and retained transcripts of the audio recordings, which David claims included private information “not relevant to the production” – such as conversations about his marriage, sex life and family disputes.

The transcripts reportedly totaled 1,700 hours of audio over ten years, as well as 41,526 hours of visual footage from 191 days of filming.

Court case: David (pictured in 2019) has reportedly accused London-based Fremantle, which produces the ITV reality series, of unlawfully breaching data protection

A copy of the transcripts was also reportedly made available to Simon Cowell’s co-production firm Cizzo on request, but a source told The Sun none were ever requested.

“All four judges regularly made jokes using foul and/or sexual language: such was the culture among the judges on the show,” his lawyers allegedly claimed.

They claimed that the judges made such jokes to keep themselves entertained during long days of filming and that they never intended the remarks to be made public, as they were “private conversations between grown-up friends”.

David is reportedly seeking the £1m he could have won from Britain’s Got Talent, as well as £1.7m in lost earnings and £3.4m to cover future losses for at least two years – a total of £6.1m.

But sources have reportedly claimed this could rise to as much as £10million, as David is said to be seeking unspecified damages for psychiatric damage, distress and anxiety, loss of control over his private information and legal costs.

David’s earnings have reportedly fallen from £3.7m in 2022 to just £101,800 in the first five months of 2023, according to court documents seen by The Sun.

Drama: He was also heard calling one contestant ‘a slightly boring girl you meet in the pub who thinks you want to fuck them, but you don’t’. Comedian Claire Harrison McCartney (pictured in 2020) later claimed the comments were about her, but the producers denied this

In the scandal, David was also heard disparaging one contestant, calling her “a bit of an annoying girl you meet in the pub who thinks you want to fuck them but you don’t”.

Comedian Claire Harrison McCartney later claimed the comments were directed at her and branded David a “sad misogynist”, but producers denied the remarks were directed at her.

Bruno Tonioli later took over as a talent show judge, signing big money.

The comments, made in January 2020 during auditions at the London Palladium, were caught on the programme’s microphones.

He and his lawyers argued at the time that these were private conversations that were never meant to be broadcast, but two weeks later he was ousted.

In one incident, the senior performer had a light-hearted banter with the judges in which he mocked Williams’ performance, the Guardian claims.

After the audition, the pensioner left, after which Walliams reportedly described him as a ‘c**t’ three times.

In a separate incident, after the contestant left the stage, Walliams remarked: ‘She’s like that slightly annoying girl you meet in the pub who thinks you want to fuck them but you don’t.’ He later added: ‘I know, she’s just like, ‘Oh, screw it!’ I said, she thinks you want to fuck her, but you don’t.

“It’s the last thing on your mind, but she’s like, ‘Yeah, I bet you know!’

‘No, I do not know! I had a little abs, but now it’s going, now it’s shriveled up in my body.’