Comic condemned as ‘unacceptable’ after Would I Lie To You? joke falls flat

David Walliams has been criticised for jokingly making  Nazi salutes during a recording of Would I Lie To You?

The BBC and production company Zeppotron has said it was ‘unacceptable’ for the Little Britain star to make the gesture during the taping of the panel show’s Christmas special.

It came after actress Helen George tried to convince the opposing panel that she sprained her wrist from waving too much during the Strictly Come Dancing tour.

According to multiple reports, Walliams joined in with increasingly vigorous waves, which culminated in him holding out his arm in a Nazi salute. 

Journalist  Sebastian Topan, who was in the audience at Pinewood Studios, told the BBC: ‘I was shocked at what I had seen, adding that there were ‘patches of quietened gasps and awkward half-laughs and broken clapping’ from the audience’.

He added: ‘The atmosphere was uncomfortable and weird.’

A report he co-wrote for The Times, says host Rob Brydon reprimanded him, while his team captain Lee Mack ‘ looked distinctly unimpressed’.

Walliams has not yet commented on the incident.

• The Would I Lie To You regulars

But a spokesperson for Banijay UK, which owns the show's production company Zeppotron, said: ‘Any attempt at humour regarding this deeply offensive gesture, whether broadcast or not, is completely unacceptable in any context.

‘It was immediately acknowledged during the recording that this segment would not be broadcast under any circumstances and we apologise to those who were at the recording for any offence caused.’

The BBC added: ‘The use of such an offensive gesture is completely unacceptable and we apologise to all at the recording for the offence caused.’

Walliams, who also hosts a podcast with his former Little Britain co-star Matt Lucas, has not appeared on terrestrial television since 2022.

He left his role as a judge on ITV show Britain's Got Talent that year after an audio recording of him making insulting comments about contestants were made public. 

Another member of this week’s studio audience posted on X: "I didn't have David Walliams doing a Nazi salute at the Would I Lie To You? Christmas taping on my 2025 bingo card."

A spokesperson for Banijay UK, which owns the show's production company Zeppotron, said: "Any attempt at humour regarding this deeply offensive gesture, whether broadcast or not, is completely unacceptable in any context.

"It was immediately acknowledged during the recording that this segment would not be broadcast under any circumstances and we apologise to those who were at the recording for any offence caused."

A BBC spokesperson said: "The use of such an offensive gesture is completely unacceptable and we apologise to all at the recording for the offence caused."

Walliams, who hosts a podcast with his former Little Britain co-star Matt Lucas, left his role as a judge on Britain's Got Talent in 2022 after a recording of him making insulting comments about contestants was leaked.

He since returned to the broadcaster to narrate It’ll Be Alright, which – ironically enough – collects bloopers and failures from the recordings of TV shows. 

Published: 12 Jun 2025