With N-word incident, Bafta have shot themselves in the foot | Catherine Shoard

Mon, 23 Feb 2026

In not editing out Tourette syndrome campaigner John Davidson’s shouted tics, Bafta have allowed their successful diversity drive to be overshadowed

• BBC apologises again for Baftas N-word incident as show removed from iPlayer for re-edit

• Why the Baftas must get rid of their two-hour delay and broadcast live

• Backlash mounts to Bafta N-word controversy

Bafta’s error was big on Sunday night - but it was in the editing, or the lack of. No one could have stopped John Davidson - who has Tourette syndrome - yelling out the N-word while two black actors, Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo, were presenting a prize. But given that they did use the two-hour time delay to judiciously remove Akinola Davies Jr’s shout of “Free Palestine!” and Alan Cumming’s comparison of the themes of Zootropolis 2 (“Lies, corrupt leaders, poisoning and persecution of a race”) to contemporary America, it seems a perverse decision not to remove an appalling racial insult, yelled involuntarily, from the TV broadcast.