Tourette's At The BAFTAS: A Very Ironic Controversy
The film "I Swear" illustrates Tourette's, but misunderstandings remain.
Posted February 27, 2026 | Reviewed by Tyler Woods
John Davidson, a Tourette syndrome sufferer and activist, was a high-profile guest at the latest BAFTA Film Awards ceremony, which took place on February 22 at the Royal Festival Hall in London. He was in attendance because the film I Swear , based on his life, had been nominated for a number of awards. I Swear had been very well received by critics and was expected to help audiences understand Davidson's condition, which affects approximately 1 in 1,000 people. Unfortunately, the BBC producers failed to edit or control the audio of Davidson's vocal outbursts during the ceremony, which included distressing racial slurs while actors Delroy Lindo and Michael B Jordan were on stage. Davidson has since claimed that he had been placed in the audience close to a live microphone , which seems very ill-advised.
Following the incident, the BBC and Davidson himself have been heavily criticized, the former because of their editorial mistakes, and the latter because some appear to believe that a Tourette's sufferer has a degree of personal choice and control over their vocalizations. Actor Jamie Foxx commented on social media : “Nah, he meant that shit.”
Tourette's Syndrome is a neurological condition with a strong genetic component, characterized by involuntary vocal and motor tics, which can be very problematic, as this incident illustrates. Only a proportion have "coprolalia", a name given to impulsive cursing, or the utterances of unacceptable words, typically obscene or offensive. Now, the crucial point here is that the sufferer is typically mortified when this happens (as were the victims of the racial slur in this case, of course, who obviously deserved an apology ).
It has been shown, incidentally, that people with Tourette's also have their own strengths and can be particularly creative and quick-thinking .
It may not be immediately obvious how very detrimental impulsive coprolalia can be for the life of the Tourette patient, although ironically, I Swear , the film based on Davidson's life, was meant to educate and shed light on this. So while the entertainment industry celebrated a film about Tourette's Syndrome, the real version proved too much for audiences to tolerate.
The N-word Davidson uttered is unacceptable and distressing because we live in a civilized society that rightly condemns racial discrimination and racial insults. Those at the receiving end are therefore right to feel scandalized when they hear it. But we need to understand that it is precisely because of this that the Tourette brain may choose this word over others in a social situation in which it will be even more unacceptable, like in a high-profile televised ceremony with two African-American actors on stage. It is the very horribleness of the term that appeals to the Tourette brain with coprolalia. When the involuntary vocalization then happens, the person uttering it feels distressed once again, as he has done a million times before.
I don't believe he meant it.
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Rafa Euba is a retired seasoned consultant psychiatrist, based in London. He has lectured in several universities and written many articles in the general and academic press, as well as three books.
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This article is part of the Bringwise Psychology Journal — daily insights on human behavior, mental health, and personal growth.