The BAFTA Film Awards 2026 7PM BBC1

[EineReiseDurchDieZeit]

Anyone going to watch? Alan Cumming is hosting

The obituary section was a mess not helped by the warbling.

Absolutely no understanding of Tourette’s at all, have you @TheLilacEagle? I’d suggest watching the film and educating yourself a bit, before you make a fool of yourself anywhere else.

I’m sure @JasmineMacwill wait for you to come back and apologise.

I thought that, then I watched the Bob Dylan film the other day and I thought he was great. He does look like a little boy though to me, but then I’m 50 now so I guess he would.

I turned it on and swiftly turned it off again as the presenters I saw were so cringeworthy- I didn’t even clock who they were either!

From the tiny bit of knowledge I have, Tourette Syndrome is not only centred around negative words.

You say we can't control our thoughts, but I never see a White, Asian or Black person and conjure up a discriminatory term for them.

Question: while the young man cannot stop his mouth from saying what his mind is thinking; why is the thought a discrimatory term? Do you think someone was telling him not to picture the n word?

John Davidson has coprolalia, it's disgraceful and disableist you calling him a racist and the PP is absolutely correct - the ignorant abuse against him on X today is sickening.

I mean he shouted "fuck the Queen" in the Queen's face.

He has a neurological condition, a particularly bad goddam dose of it at that.

Everyone has intrusive thoughts, for most of us our brains are very skilled at filtering them, for people like Johnny (people who experience ego-dystonic thoughts) it's different. He has the added neurological burden of being unable to not vocalise the intrusive thought. Ego-dystonic thoughts are hell for the sufferer, because they're the antithesis of who you are.

You're attempting to comprehend his condition through the prism of your own experience. You can hear (I assume, apologies if you can't, as I'm using this only as an illustrative example), a deaf person can't. Would you 'blame' them for not hearing you? Would you ask if I can hear, why can't they?

Coprolalia is a condition of blurting out socially inapproriate words or phrases. Sufferers might tic by shouting "I have a bomb" at an airport or similar as well. Just whatever words or phrases would be worst in that given moment.

Here's a clip from the film I Swear, if anyone's interested:

https://x.com/shivlestat/status/2025660319398314053

I'm actually so upset at particularly the Americans on social media tearing into John Davidson, that poor man. Just goes to show how needed he still is an a campaigner.

He's achieved so much through his campaign work, he's contributed to society in such a positive way. He's raised awareness of not only Tourette's, but other conditions like OCD (another condition many people misunderstand and minimise).

It's upsetting and frustrating to see this discourse on twitter today, because people should realise that the vocalisations are the opposite of the man he is.

I'm Scots, and Johnny (also Scots) is more 'famous' here than anywhere else. We're very protective of him, we know how much he's suffered (his entire life) because of this terrible affliction.

I am also in Scotland and yes totally agree - he's so very not a person who has come from any sort of privilege, he so deserves the recognition for what he's achieved as a campaigner, it really hurts to see people with no understanding of the disability attack him online and call him a racist. Heartbreaking.

Hmmmmm, as a black woman who has been subjected to racism, my prism is that his involuntary action is particularly harmful and I don't accept that is a disgusting outlook.
When he uses a racial slur, it is a racist tic / outburst and the fact it is involuntary does not change what it is.
We can accept his Tourettes is what caused him to verbalise his thoughts, whilst also acknowledging said racist tic is particularly hurtful for anyone on the receiving end of it.

I didn’t realise what was shouted at Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo last night until the news this morning. I find the whole thing really sad, yes it may have been involuntary but it’s such a terrible slur. Upsetting all round.

There are categories of people who are given a free pass for using that word. An actor playing a role may be required to say it. That doesn’t make them racist.

A person from that community may say it as they feel they are reclaiming it - that doesn’t make them racist.

I would add to those categories, a person suffering from a neurological disorder who has no control over it. They can no more be held accountable for it or accused of racism than the actor reading lines from a script. It clearly isn’t who he is.

The outrage I’ve read online is appalling, I can’t imagine how difficult his life must have been.

There was no may about it, it was entirely involuntary.

I've worked with several people who have Tourette's, affecting them to varying degrees. The level to which it affects John is at the extreme end of the spectrum.
We all note a person's appearance upon first sight, it fleets through our mind at lightening speed and is barely noticeable. For someone like John, whose conscious mind is SUPER aware that his Tourette's makes him involuntarily say words, there's a quick chain reaction of sight/awareness (not opinion, mere awareness) of well known negative terminology and the desperate hope he doesn't say the worst word(s) possible. Often, the tic is out of his mouth before his conscious mind can even catch up (eg if someone is obese, John will tic the word fatty). I've saw people with Tourette's be distraught to the point of utter despair at the names they've called their parents, dreading going home because they know they're going to call them these names again. It's unimaginable.

The content of his vocalisations when he tics are entirely meaningless. There's a concerted effort on twitter today however to deny that fact, and to label John a racist. No level of explanation is enough to quell the suspicion. It's been an eye opener for me, I had no idea that level of pre-existing prejudice existed.

Yes I realised after I posted it “may” was a poor choice of word, but it was too late to edit @JasmineMacI just feel like it’s a tough situation for everyone involved. I feel really bad for John but also for the people on stage, not knowing what’s happening

I'm quite dismayed at some of the discourse on line as well as this thread. Ive not worked much with people who have Tourettes but worked with a lot of people who have OCD and distressing intrusive thoughts. Often these thoughts are violent and graphically so despite the people themselves not being violent. It's often their biggest fear, I worked with a young man who had intrusive sexual thoughts about being a paedophile, he used to become very anxious walking past schools. He was not a paedophile but this was his worst fear and he couldn't stop the thoughts coming into his head.
As a previous pp said it's about context and intent but I think the BBC should not have aired it.

its so sad that public commentary on this seems to want people to have one of two distinct viewpoints

1. it was horrendously racist, so John is the villain and any empathy is solely reserved for Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo
2. tics are involuntary, uncontrolled and often caused by knowledge that it would be offensive and outrageous, so any empathy is solely reserved for John Davidson

Cant we all appreciate that this was probably horrible for everyone involved, and im sure everyone feels awful about it?

I think the apology would have been better received if it hadn't included "if you were offended" and instead it was "of course it was offensive to you"

I wasn't offended. Subsequently, I don't need a third party deciding I was.

I'm no more offended by a Tourette's 'neurological spasm' than I would be a Parkinson's 'neurological spasm'.

ok, i was thinking more that the language was offensive (its hard to argue that the n-word isnt...) rather than being offended by the person saying it.
That was the point I was trying to make, sorry if i wasnt clear in my intent.

I dont think it helps anyone to pretend that hearing the n-word aimed at you on stage isnt going to be really difficult and emotionally charged, regardless of the person saying it and the reasons. There needs to be empathy for everyone involved here, i think

In spite of it being the imp on his shoulder (as it were) who said it, rather than John himself, he will absolutely have apologised to both chaps.