John Davidson Reportedly Used N-Word Not Once, But Twice During BAFTA Ceremony Targeted Toward a Different Celeb

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During the live BAFTA Film Awards broadcast, John Davidson allegedly used a racial slur directed at Wunmi Mosaku, a BAFTA nominee. This incident followed an earlier moment in the ceremony where Davidson mistakenly said the N-word while referring to actors Delroy Lindo and Michael B. Jordan, leading to a significant reaction from the BBC.

BBC Director-General Tim Davie detailed what happened in a letter to the Culture, Media & Sport Committee. He explained that the team broadcasting the event didn’t immediately realize the offensive language had been used twice. Although the slur aimed at Mosaku was removed from the TV broadcast, initial confusion meant the first instance stayed on BBC iPlayer for 15 hours after the event ended.

According to Davie, the editing team working on the show mistakenly thought they had removed the problematic incident. They believed they had cut out the offensive language that was shouted during the Best Supporting Actress award. This initial misunderstanding led to a delay in removing the content from iPlayer, as the team initially didn’t believe the slur was audible in the broadcast.

I’ve been following the fallout from this incident closely, and it’s clear the BBC is taking it seriously. Kate Phillips, their Chief Content Officer, addressed staff directly, admitting the situation has caused real distress and hurt feelings. She’s been in constant contact with BAFTA and her own team all week, and she’s planning a series of open discussions with the BBC’s diversity groups – including those focused on disability, LGBTQ+ issues, and ethnic diversity – to really understand the impact and move forward.

“I sincerely apologize for this situation. We take all complaints very seriously and will definitely be looking into what happened internally to see how we can improve,” she said.

Tim Davie said the BBC is looking into why the offensive language wasn’t identified and removed from iPlayer more quickly. The BBC’s complaints team is investigating further, and Davie explained they’re already learning from this, building on improvements made after past incidents, such as the controversy surrounding Bob Vylan at Glastonbury, to improve their checks and controls.

The situation has also gained attention from outside the BBC. According to reports, Warner Bros. executives voiced their dissatisfaction with how the BBC dealt with it during a difficult meeting.

This episode shows how tricky live broadcasts can be, especially when dealing with potentially upsetting content. It emphasizes the need to quickly address sensitive issues and have strong editorial checks in place to stop offensive material from airing or staying online for too long.

Live broadcasts are always a bit risky, but recent issues with the BBC prove that even seasoned professionals need to have better safety measures in place. It’s vital that they figure out what went wrong to avoid repeating these mistakes.

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2026-03-07 04:44