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Media27 outlets ran this3 min read

HarperCollins drops David Walliams' book back catalogue

Publisher cites allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards young women, which the author denies.

AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made

Published
David Walliams

What this story says

  • HarperCollins has dropped David Walliams' entire back catalogue of books.
  • The publisher cited allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards young women.
  • David Walliams strongly denies behaving inappropriately.
  • Remaining copies of his books will be withdrawn from shops and online.

Who covered it

Left 37%(7)Centre 42%(8)Right 21%(4)

Percentages are shares of the 19 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 8 of the 27 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .

Trust

50/100

Craft

60/100

Hype

40/100

27 sources · methodology

Missing from the right

Only 4 of the 19 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated right.

A reader who follows the right would not have seen this. We report the absence rather than explain it: outlets choose what to cover for many reasons, and we have no evidence about which one applies here.

HarperCollins has confirmed it will cease publishing David Walliams's entire back catalogue of books. The publisher cited allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards young women. Walliams, 55, has strongly denied behaving inappropriately and is taking legal advice, according to the Daily Mirror.

The decision means existing titles will be removed from sale. Remaining copies will gradually disappear from shops, and e-book and audiobook editions will also be withdrawn. HarperCollins has published all 23 of Walliams's children's books, which have sold more than 60 million copies worldwide. Six of his books have been adapted for television.

Disagreement on the reason for the publisher's decision

HarperCollins stated it was dropping the author's back catalogue following allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards young women, as reported by RTÉ and GB News. The Daily Mirror reported that the publisher cut ties with the author following allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards young women. However, a spokesperson for Walliams told the Daily Mirror that he had never been informed of any allegations raised against him by HarperCollins, was not party to any investigation, and was not given an opportunity to answer questions.

What the coverage left out

None of the left-rated digests mention that David Walliams was dropped from the line-up for the Waterstones Children's Book Festival. None of the centre-rated digests mention that David Walliams was dropped from the line-up for the Waterstones Children's Book Festival. None of the right-rated digests mention that David Walliams was dropped from the line-up for the Waterstones Children's Book Festival.

Tags:#DavidWalliams#HarperCollins#Publishing#ChildrensBooks#Allegations

Coverage settled. We checked this 13 times and stopped on 23 Sept 2026, 19:16. The figures above are what it finished at.

How each side covered it

Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.

Left

7 rated outlets

  • The left-rated reports led on the publisher dropping David Walliams's entire back catalogue. The Daily Mirror, which provided a full report, stated the publisher had dropped the books following allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards young women. It also noted Walliams's denial and his legal advice. The Daily Mirror report mentioned that the decision followed a Telegraph report about a complaint from a junior colleague and that former employees had alleged they were advised not to visit Walliams's home. Metro News and Pink News digests also reported the publisher dropping the back catalogue.

Centre

8 rated outlets

  • The centre-rated reports focused on HarperCollins dropping David Walliams's back catalogue. RTÉ and chortle.co.uk digests stated the publisher was dropping the author's back catalogue. The dailymail.com digest reported that the publisher was pulling all of David Walliams's books from print, noting he was a best-selling children's author whose books have sold over 60 million copies.

Right

4 rated outlets

  • The right-rated report from GB News stated that HarperCollins had dropped David Walliams' back catalogue of books. The digest confirmed the publisher would no longer sell or reprint any of his children's titles, effectively removing his entire back catalogue from its publishing roster.

Questions about this coverage

How did the left and right cover HarperCollins drops David Walliams' book back catalogue?
Of the 19 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 37% are rated left, 42% are rated centre, 21% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 27. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
Is HarperCollins drops David Walliams' book back catalogue left or right?
Neither side dominates it. Of the 19 rated outlets on this story, 37% are rated left, 42% are rated centre, 21% are rated right, and no side holds the 70% this site would want before calling a field one-sided. A story is not left or right in any case; the outlets that carried it are what carry ratings.
Is the coverage of HarperCollins drops David Walliams' book back catalogue biased?
HarperCollins drops David Walliams' book back catalogue is one event reported by 27 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
Which side is not reporting HarperCollins drops David Walliams' book back catalogue?
When we first saw this story, outlets rated right had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
Which outlets covered HarperCollins drops David Walliams' book back catalogue?
27 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
Why has HarperCollins dropped David Walliams' books?
HarperCollins has dropped David Walliams' entire back catalogue of books, citing allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards young women. David Walliams strongly denies these allegations and is taking legal advice.
What will happen to existing copies of David Walliams' books?
Remaining copies of David Walliams' books will gradually disappear from shops. E-book and audiobook editions will also be withdrawn from sale as HarperCollins removes his entire back catalogue.
How many books has David Walliams published with HarperCollins?
HarperCollins has published all 23 of David Walliams' children's books, including titles like The Boy in the Dress, Mr Stink, Gangsta Granny, and Ratburger. These books have sold over 60 million copies worldwide.

Read it at the source

27 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.

Left

7

Centre

8

Right

4

Not rated

8

How did this read?

About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.

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