Jonathan Ross breaks silence to explain infamous David Walliams joke

TV presenter Jonathan Ross has released a statement saying he is “horrified” by allegations against David Walliams, and by the crimes of Russell Brand. Ross, who says he was “on friendly terms with both men” but was unaware of their conduct, also sought to explain a joke he made about Walliams at a comedy awards night in 2004, saying he did not write it and had thought it was “exaggerated for comic effect”. Multiple women have accused Walliams, 55, of sexual misconduct, including when they were teenagers. The allegations were published on Tuesday after an investigation by The Guardian and ITV News. Walliams denies any wrongdoing, stating that he is not a sexual predator and has not broken the law. Brand was jailed on Monday for 10 and a half years for raping a woman and sexually assaulting three others during his showbusiness career. The conviction of Brand, and the allegations against Walliams, have led to renewed attention on colleagues and friends of the two men, amid questions over how much was known about their behaviour with women. Ross appeared on several television shows alongside Brand and also featured on his BBC Radio 2 show in 2008, when the pair became embroiled in the “Sachsgate” scandal over a voicemail they left for actor Andrew Sachs. Ross also appears in a photograph featured in the ITV documentary, David Walliams: Power and Silence. He was pictured alongside Walliams at an event also attended by one of the women who later made allegations about Walliams’ subsequent conduct. But Ross has firmly denied any knowledge of sexual misconduct. “I am as horrified by the revelations about David Walliams and the crimes of Russell Brand as the rest of the nation,” he said in a statement released to the Press Association. “There was a time in my life when I was on friendly terms with both men, and during that period I was genuinely unaware of their conduct. “My thoughts are with the many, many women who have bravely come forward.” Ross also sought to explain a joke he made about Walliams at an awards ceremony in 2004. Referring to the age of the British Comedy Awards, he had said ” like, all 15 year olds, it’s drunk, it’s unpredictable, and it’s probably going home with David Walliams”. Walliams was shown laughing in response. In the his statement on Tuesday night, Ross said: “I recognise how deeply shocking it is to revisit footage of a joke delivered by me at the Comedy Awards in 2004, in which I make light of the notion of Walliams going home with a 15-year-old. “This joke was submitted to me by the Comedy Awards script writing team and I believed that the punchline was a reference to the fact he had publicly dated younger women, exaggerated for comic effect. “It is also a tasteless joke that I would not dream of making today about anyone, but that is beside the point. “Had I had any reason to suspect that it might be referring to actual events, I would not only have refused to use it, but I would not have felt comfortable continuing a personal or professional relationship with him. “I also like to think that I would have acted upon that knowledge.”