A TOURETTES activist who shouted a racist slur at the Baftas has revealed he also called host Alan Cumming a “paedo” due to his tics.
John Davidson felt a “wave of shame and embarrassment” after shouting the slur while Delroy Lindo and Michael B. Jordan were on stage presenting an award on Sunday night.
The BBC apologised for failing to cut the slur from it’s coverage of the ceremony at Royal Festival Hall, despite there being a two-hour delay.
Now, in his first interview since the incident, John revealed he said around 10 offensive tics during the show before walking out.
He shouted “pedophile” while host Alan Cumming was talking about Paddington Bear, a children’s character.
He told Variety: “As always, I felt a wave of shame and embarrassment hit me all at once. You want the floor to swallow you up. I wanted to disappear. I wanted to hide — just get away from all the eyes.”
John said while his tics can be triggered by his surroundings, they do not reflect his own values.
During the show, host Cumming told Paddington: “Maybe you would like to come home with me, Paddington. It wouldn’t be the first time I have taken a hairy Peruvian bear home with me.”
This prompted John to shout “paedophile”.
John added: “I can’t begin to explain how upset and distraught I have been as the impact from Sunday sinks in.
“I have almost no ability to suppress, and when the situation is stressful, I have absolutely no choice but to tic — it simply bursts out of me like a gunshot.”
John said that he expected the broadcaster- who he has worked with before – to control the sound especially as the audience were told that swearing would be cut.
He added that as no one responded to his earlier tics and because he was so far from the front he assumed that he could not be heard on the stage.
Bafta judge Jonte Richardson has since announced he will step down from his role on the Bafta emerging talent panel following the ceremony.
The Bafta judge wrote on LinkedIn yesterday: “After considerable soul-searching, I feel compelled to withdraw from the Bafta emerging talent judging panel.
“The organisation’s handling of the unfortunate Tourettes N-Word incident last night at the awards was utterly unforgivable.”
He continued: “I hope Bafta leadership comprehend the damage they and the BBC have caused and take the necessary steps to ensure their production staff are inclusive enough to prevent such an issue in the future.”
Scottish actor Thierry Mabonga appears in the film as Mr Davidson’s lawyer, and posted on TikTok yesterday to comment on the incident.
In his video, he defended John and said: “This is the condition, the disease of Tourettes syndrome. John cannot control what he says. In fact, that’s the whole point of why we’re making this film.
“We’ve made this film to educate people about Tourettes syndrome – how can you say that he can’t be there at the awards? This is a film about his life.
“This is a film about him. Absolutely he has to be there, and it’s great that he was there.”
John has encouraged people to watch the double gong winning I Swear which was inspired by his life with Tourette syndrome.
The film – which he was also a producer on – sheds light on the complex condition and how his tics have lead to great upset and pain.
John’s team told the magazine that he has contacted the studio behind Sinners – which Jordan, Lindo and production designer Hannah Belcher worked on – so he can directly apologise to them.
Jamie Foxx previously claimed that John “meant” the racial slur and branded the involuntary outburst unstoppable.
A fuming Foxx said on social media: “Out of all the words you could’ve said Tourettes makes you say that. Nah he meant that s**t. Unacceptable.”
Tourettes Action charity responded: “We also want to address the negative comments that have surfaced following John’s involuntary vocal tics during the ceremony.
“We deeply understand that these words can cause hurt but, at the same time, it is vital that the public understands a fundamental truth about Tourette syndrome, tics are involuntary.”
Following the backlash, BBC bosses have apologised and removed the episode from iPlayer.
The corporation said: “Some may have heard strong and offensive language.
“This arose from involuntary verbal tics associated with Tourettes and, as explained during the ceremony, it was not intentional.
“We apologise that this was not edited out prior to broadcast.
