Simon Cowell discusses David Walliams’ departure from Britain’s Got Talent

Simon Cowell has recently reflected on David Walliams’ departure from Britain’s Got Talent.

It is pertinent to mention that BGT returned for its 16th season with longtime star Cowell, Amanda Holden and Alesha Dixon on the judging panel.

The trio were later joined by Bruno Toniolo, who has stepped in to replace Walliams.

Earlier in January, it was confirmed that the Little Britain star would not be reprising his role as a judge on the reality competition after he had made disrespectful comments about contestants.

It is reported that Walliams apologised for his “disrespectful” comments at the time, saying, “These were private conversations and – like most conversations with friends – were never intended to be shared. Nevertheless, I am sorry.”

However, in a new interview with The Sun, Cowell discussed the controversy surrounding his former co-star’s departure from BGT.

Cowell stated that he “didn’t really get involved in the decision”.

“From what I understand, he decided to take a step back,” he remarked.

Cowell continued, “It all happened relatively quickly. I was on holiday and then the next thing is I’m having conversations about who’s going to take his place.”

“We did say to the two producers, ‘You have to make the final decision,’ because, yeah, I am an exec producer, but they’re more hands on,” explained the 63-year-old.

Cowell noted, “Obviously everyone had some input – the network, the producers, [production company] Fremantle, all of us said at the time, these comments are completely unacceptable.

“I had not heard them before and, yeah, it was upsetting. But from where I’m sitting, this wasn’t something I believe was constant,” he added.