Film and TV star Alan Cumming has confirmed he will never host the BAFTAs again.
The TV version of the prestigious long-running awards ceremony takes place tonight with Greg Davies at the helm, following Alan's stint hosting the celebrated film ceremony earlier this year.
During the evening, an offensive racial slur was shouted from the crowd, causing considerable distress. Campaigner John Davidson, who lives with severe Tourette's syndrome, was seated in the audience to show his support for the film I Swear, which had received several nominations.
As actors Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo took to the stage to present an award, Davidson involuntarily shouted the N-word. His condition means he has absolutely no control over his outbursts. The offensive language was loud enough to be heard throughout the room and was also picked up during the subsequent BBC broadcast.
Alan - who was forced to apologise during the ceremony - has admitted he was already exasperated with the role before he even stepped onto the stage, telling The Sunday Times newspaper: "Right before it started, I said to my agent: 'Remind me, I never want to do this again'," reports the Mirror.
Venting his frustration over how the evening unfolded, he said: "[It was] bad people who weren't doing their jobs properly, who really had not prepared and let people down."
He revealed his travel arrangements had been mishandled and there was no food provided during rehearsals, adding: "And it's a tough gig. You're trying to be funny for a bunch of people who are used to very generic, middle-of-the-road things, so you're fighting against the quirky personality they want you to bring to it. That's a battle."
Alan said he wasn't impressed with how BAFTA bosses handled the N-word controversy, insisting they could have done more to prepare him prior to the event.
He gave his own apology on the night, telling the audience: "You may have heard some strong offensive language tonight, but if you've seen the film I Swear, it's about the experience of a person with Tourette syndrome...
"It is a disability and the ticks you have heard tonight are involuntary. That means the person who has Tourette syndrome has no control over their language, and we apologise if it has caused offence."
Reflecting on his apology, he admitted he now feels "pi***ed off".
"I watched myself back," he recalled. "I was very smiley, I didn't do it with the gravitas and tone I would have used had I known. That p***ed me off. "
He went on to say: "I had a thing in my ear and you can't hear very specifically what's happening...I haven't actually asked them, but I don't imagine that Delroy and Michael B Jordan heard the actual slur either, - they were probably just, like, 'Well, there's someone shouting in the audience'.
"It was an international scandal. Then poor John gave this interview saying, 'I'm not a racist. I called Alan Cumming a paedophile too.'.. . Oh great! He's equal opportunities and my name and 'paedophile' were in the same sentences all over the world'."
It was at this juncture that he disclosed he would refuse to return as host for another year, instructing his agent to remind him "I never want to do this again".
The BAFTA TV Awards airs tonight at 7pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
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