I raised my kid on David Walliams - I've made a huge mistake

The best thing a teacher ever told my about my son was when he was in Grade 2, and she said he had “an excellent sense of humour.”

As a woman who thinks she's pretty hilarious, it was a proud mum moment for me. And for once, I'm not joking.

I've always been pretty chill about humour; it's ine of the joys of life. When my kid was in his adolescence, we watched things lots of probably inappropriate things such as Zoolander.

Get him to the Greek, with Russell Brand, was one of our faves.

As was Little Britain.

Little Britain, starring the now-cancelled David Walliams, was hugely successful, wildly inappropriate, and at the time, very very funny. 

It was also highly controversial because of its depiction of blackface, disabilities, and poverty.

But as a parent, I thought it was also a good opportunity to teach my son about different kinds of humour, kindness, tolerance. 

I mean, Vicky Pollard as a character in the show,  still makes me laugh.

We loved Walliams, for his imaginative characters. And so, I bought all his kids books, which of course were nothing like Little Britain. We even went to see Billionaire Boy, of his books made into a a play, at the Opera House.

The Opera House, you guys. Such were the lofty heights Walliams and his reputation once reached.

That's all changed now, thanks to sexual allegations against Walliams that have recently emerged. But even more than that, his desperation for months to have his name suppressed in the media because he might take his own life.

I have no doubt that's a genuine risk when the career you've built for decades will be shattered. But was he also going to accept responsibility for anything he's done wrong?

No one is ever the person we think we know. And that's true especially for male ‘comedians’ such as Brand, Bill Cosby, Jimmy Saville - just to name a few. That's another story. 

I've caught myself looking at Walliams' books on our shelves this week. Sitting there next to the delightful Anh Do's kids series. 

it occurs to me: if someone was capable of creating the content of Little Britain, wasn't that a sign of character? Regardless of whether he's legally guilty or not?

Shouldn't I have seen that coming when I was encouraging my son into worlds he created?

Or is this part of life: the downfall or heroes?

If I had my time again, perhaps I would stick to Mork and Mindy.