Tourette's Campaigner Criticizes BBC Over Broadcast of Offensive Slur at Baftas
Tourette's campaigner John Davidson has stated that the BBC should have "worked harder to prevent anything that I said" from being broadcast during the Bafta Film Awards and questioned the decision to seat him near a microphone.
Davidson, who has Tourette's syndrome characterized by involuntary tics, uttered a racist slur while black actors Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo were on stage at the ceremony held on Sunday.
In an interview with Variety, Davidson recalled,
"I remember there was a microphone just in front of me, and with hindsight I have to question whether this was wise, so close to where I was seated, knowing I would tic."
The BBC responded by reiterating that the offensive language
"arose from involuntary verbal tics associated with Tourette syndrome"and added,
"We apologise that this was not edited out prior to broadcast and it has been removed from BBC ."
On Tuesday, Kate Phillips, the BBC's chief content officer, informed staff that another racial slur had been removed from the broadcast. She stated that the slur shouted during Lindo and Jordan's appearance
"was aired in error and we would never have knowingly allowed this to be broadcast."
Davidson, who is from Galashiels, Scotland, revealed that he shouted approximately ten different offensive words during the ceremony due to his tics, but media coverage has largely focused on the N-word as if it were the only one.
Variety reported that Davidson has reached out to Warner Bros to apologise directly to Jordan, Lindo, and Hannah Beachler, the production designer of the film Sinners, who commented on hearing racial slurs.
Meanwhile, Google issued an apology after a news alert about the incident included the N-word. The company said,
"We're very sorry for this mistake. We've removed the offensive notification and are working to prevent this from happening again."
Davidson told Variety that the studio behind the film I Swear, which depicts his experiences with Tourette's, had discussions with Bafta before the event regarding the possibility of his tics occurring.
He explained,
"StudioCanal were working closely with Bafta, and Bafta had made us all aware that any swearing would be edited out of the broadcast."
Davidson added,
"I have made four documentaries with the BBC in the past, and feel that they should have been aware of what to expect from Tourette's and worked harder to prevent anything that I said - which, after all, was some 40 rows back from the stage - from being included in the broadcast."
Comprehensive Review Underway
At awards ceremonies, microphones are often positioned throughout the venue to capture ambient crowd noise, applause, and cheering.
In a statement issued on Monday, Bafta acknowledged the
"harm this has caused, address what happened and apologise to all."
In a letter to its members on Tuesday, Bafta assured them that
"a comprehensive review is under way."
Following the incident, Davidson said he chose to leave the auditorium
"so as not to cause any more upset,"and noted that Bafta provided him with a private room equipped with a monitor to watch the remainder of the ceremony.
Davidson emphasized his right to attend the event as the subject and executive producer of I Swear, which received five nominations.
He said,
"I also knew that as voting members, most people in the audience would have seen I Swear and would be well prepared, well educated and well informed about my condition."
Davidson acknowledged the challenges of attending the event, stating,
"I was aware of how physically and mentally difficult it would be for me to attend. I can't begin to explain how upset and distraught I have been as the impact from Sunday sinks in."
Intent and Impact of Tics
In his Variety interview, Davidson clarified,
"I want to be really clear that the intent behind them [the tics] is zero. What you're hearing is a symptom - not my character, not my thought, not my belief."
He described feeling
"a wave of shame and embarrassment"after uttering the racial slur.
Davidson explained,
"Tourette's can feel spiteful and searches out the most upsetting tic for me personally and for those around me. What you hear me shouting is literally the last thing in the world I believe; it is the opposite of what I believe.
The most offensive word that I ticked at the ceremony, for example, is a word I would never use and would completely condemn if I did not have Tourette's."
Several members of the Tourette's community have also provided insight into the condition.
US reality TV star Baylen Dupree, who has Tourette's syndrome, wrote on Instagram,
"Tourette's doesn't pull from hatred – it often pulls from anxiety, from fear, from the very thing you're most scared of saying.
The brain misfires on what feels charged or taboo. It doesn't excuse the hurt a word carries. Words matter. History matters. Pain matters. But so does neurological reality."
understands that the producers editing the ceremony for the delayed BBC broadcast were working from a TV truck and did not hear the slur shouted during Lindo and Jordan's stage appearance.
However, Dorothy Byrne, former head of news and current affairs at and current BBC Radio 4 Today programme contributor, rejected this explanation during an interview on Wednesday.
Byrne reflected,
"John needed a BBC person next to him at all times to support him, but also to relay and be aware of anything that he said.
So there needed to be, in the written plan, a means by which the people in the truck would be aware of what happened in the room."
Reactions and Criticism
Sir Craig Oliver, former executive and Conservative communications chief, criticized the TV truck explanation as
"kind of entering into the dog-ate-my-homework territory."
He commented,
"It's increasingly obvious that we live in a time where there are going to be controversial things at live events, and there is going to be potential reputational damage to the BBC.
So does it have that grip, does it have that process in place? And increasingly it seems like the answer is no."
BBC Radio 1 DJ Oré Olukoga expressed his disappointment with the BBC's handling of the situation.
Olukoga, who hosts the station's early weekend breakfast show, wrote on X,
"The incident at the Baftas and the reaction to it has been deeply traumatising.
I understand all the nuances at play and would never want to minimise someone's plight, but as a Black man who works for the BBC, I am deeply, deeply disappointed in how it's been handled."
