Tourette's Campaigner Requests Remote Viewing for Scottish Baftas After Slur Incident

Tourette's campaigner John Davidson has requested to watch the upcoming Scottish Baftas ceremony remotely via video link in a private room. This request follows an incident earlier this year where Davidson involuntarily shouted a racial slur during the Bafta Film Awards.

Davidson's film, "I Swear," which chronicles his experiences with Tourette's syndrome while growing up in the Scottish Borders during the 1980s, has received seven nominations for the Scottish Baftas. The film had previously won three awards at the Bafta Film Awards in February, but the event was overshadowed by controversy.

During the February ceremony, Davidson, whose Tourette's involves involuntary tics, uttered an N-word while presenters Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo were on stage. He subsequently left the event early, expressing deep mortification if his tics were perceived as intentional. He stated at the time, "I have spent my life trying to support and empower the Tourette’s community and to teach empathy, kindness and understanding from others, and I will continue to do so."

The BBC, which broadcast the ceremony on a two-hour delay, apologized for not editing out the slur from its coverage. Davidson had been assured by Bafta organizers that any expletives would be removed from the broadcast. He later expressed to Variety that he felt the BBC should have been more aware of Tourette's and taken greater measures to prevent such an incident, particularly given the proximity of a microphone to his seat.

Bafta issued an "unreserved apology" for the offensive language, acknowledging the significant pain it could cause. The BBC launched an investigation into the matter. Bafta Scotland confirmed that Davidson, an MBE recipient in 2019 for his awareness work on Tourette's, had proposed watching the November 15th ceremony from a separate room with family and friends. The organization stated it has collaborated with safeguarding and inclusion experts to facilitate Davidson's participation in the safest manner possible for all attendees.

The full list of nominees for the Scottish Baftas, to be hosted by Edith Bowman in Glasgow, was announced recently. "I Swear" leads with seven nominations, including acting nods for Peter Mullan, Robert Aramayo, Scott Ellis Watson, and Shirley Henderson. Other nominated films include "Dept. Q" and "Dinosaur," each with three nominations.

In television categories, "Slow Horses" star Jack Lowden received a nomination for Actor Television, alongside Dougray Scott for "Summerwater," Peter Capaldi for "Criminal Record," and Robert Carlyle for "The Hack." The Actress Television category features Ashley Storrie for "Dinosaur," Chloe Pirrie for "Dept. Q," Emma Laird for "Mint," and Lucy Halliday for "The Testaments." Awards will also be presented for directing in factual and fiction categories. Previously announced nominations for the Audience Award include Ncuti Gatwa for "Doctor Who," Katie Leung for "Bridgerton," and Stephen Libby for "The Traitors."