The BBC has revealed it received more than 1500 complaints after it broadcast Tourette's campaigner John Davidson experiencing a tic which caused him to shout a racial slur during the Bafta Film Awards last month.
The 54-year-old could be heard shouting an involuntary racial slur as Sinners actors Delroy Lindo and Michael B Jordan presented the award for special visual effects during the ceremony at London’s Royal Festival Hall in February.
Davidson said he chose to leave the auditorium early as he was “aware of the distress my tics were causing” and has since apologised, saying that he was “deeply mortified” if anyone considered his tics to be “intentional or to carry any meaning”.
The BBC has since apologised and said the incident was “a serious mistake” and that a “fast-tracked” internal investigation is underway following the complaints.
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The broadcaster revealed this week that it received 1588 complaints following the incident and noted that viewers were “unhappy a racial slur was heard and that it was not edited out of the broadcast”.
The complaints have been referred to the BBC’s Executive Complaints Unit, which is conducting the probe into the incident.
Campaigner Davidson was at the Baftas representing the film I Swear, which tells the story of the Scottish campaigner’s life with the condition, which he developed when he was 12.
In an interview with Variety, he said the BBC should have “worked harder” to ensure his racial slur was not broadcast.
He told the publication: “Bafta had made us all aware that any swearing would be edited out of the broadcast.
“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.”
Bafta also issued an apology in the aftermath, in which they said they “apologise unreservedly” to the actors who were on stage as well as “all those impacted”.
They added: “During the ceremony, John chose to leave the auditorium and watch the rest of the ceremony from a screen, and we would like to thank him for his dignity and consideration of others on what should have been a night of celebration for him.
“We take full responsibility for putting our guests in a very difficult situation and we apologise to all. We will learn from this and keep inclusion at the core of all we do, maintaining our belief in film and storytelling as a critical conduit for compassion and empathy.”
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