BAFTAs row after John Davidson shouts racial slur during live presentations

john davidson, the Tourette’s campaigner whose life inspired the film I Swear, shouted a racial slur during the BAFTA Film Awards while two actors were on stage, and broadcasters and organisers faced immediate criticism for not editing the moment from the delayed broadcast.

John Davidson's outbursts at the BAFTAs

John Davidson, the film’s real-life subject and a campaigner from Galashiels in Scotland who was made an MBE in 2019, shouted several loud tics before and during the ceremony at London’s Royal Festival Hall. The outbursts included loud exclamations such as “Boring!” during housekeeping, “Bullshit!” when the audience was asked not to curse, and “Shut the fuck up” during BAFTA chair Sara Putt’s introductory remarks; later in the ceremony he also shouted the N-word as Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo were on stage. One account described the moment as occurring while they presented the first prize of the night; other coverage places the shout as they announced the best visual effects winner, Avatar: Fire and Ash. Davidson was diagnosed with Tourette’s at age 25 and first experienced symptoms at 12, and his tics, organisers said, are involuntary and can include uncontrollable swearing.

Broadcast handling and the apology

The, which aired the ceremony on a two-hour delay on One, apologised and said the offensive word should have been edited out prior to broadcast and will be removed from the version on iPlayer. The moment remained on iPlayer on Monday morning before the ceremony was taken down. The shout was audible in the televised coverage, though the added many viewers would have struggled to make out the word, and the broadcaster declined to comment further on why it was not initially bleeped or edited.

Alan Cumming, advance warnings and BAFTA’s duty of care

Host Alan Cumming interrupted the show several times to ask for understanding, telling the audience the strong language could be part of how Tourette’s presents for some people and apologising if anyone was offended. A floor manager had introduced Davidson before the event, saying: “John has Tourette’s Syndrome so please be aware you might hear some involuntary noises or movements during the ceremony. ” BAFTA said it had started from “a position of inclusion, ” took its duty of care seriously, took measures to inform attendees about Davidson’s presence and acknowledged the “harm this has caused, address what happened and apologise to all. ”

Reactions from presenters, politicians and the film community

Delroy Lindo later told Vanity Fair that he and Michael B. Jordan “did what we had to do” while presenting, but wished someone from BAFTA had spoken to them afterwards. Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch said the had made “a horrible mistake” by not editing the slur and that an explanation and an apology were important. The incident prompted debate among people at the ceremony and online: some emphasised that Tourette’s is widely misunderstood, while others said the language could be emotionally triggering for presenters. Sinners’ production designer Hannah Beachler took to social media after the show.

I Swear, awards context and reactions from the film’s cast

I Swear, directed, written and produced by Kirk Jones, follows Davidson at age 25 after his appearance in the documentary John’s Not Mad and was nominated for five BAFTAs including leading actor for Robert Aramayo and best supporting actor for Peter Mullan. The film won casting, and Robert Aramayo also received the EE Rising Star award; collecting that prize, Aramayo called Davidson “the most remarkable man I ever met, ” and said Davidson is forthcoming with education about Tourette’s and believes more needs to be learned about the condition. Aramayo’s best actor win came over Leonardo DiCaprio, Timothée Chalamet, Ethan Hawke and Michael B. Jordan.

Organisers said Davidson left the Royal Festival Hall around 25 minutes into the ceremony of his own accord and was not asked to leave by BAFTA. The outbursts were not audible in the second half of the show.

The has said the offensive moment will be removed from the iPlayer version of the ceremony, and BAFTA has said it will address what happened and apologise to those affected.