Craig David previously spoke out on how the Bo’ Selecta! show ‘ruined his life’.
You know the one, from before Leigh Francis was properly known as Keith Lemon and he’d pretend to be different characters for the Channel 4 sketch show.
Bo’ Selecta! was broadcast on TV from 2002 until 2009 and featured the star playing Avid Merrion, a dangerous stalker who obsessed over celebrities.
And the sketches would then feature Francis wearing exaggerated latex face masks, impersonating celebrities including the likes of Elton John, Kelly Osbourne and David Blaine.
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Plus, there were also the likes of Mel B and Craig David – a central character of the show.
The name itself was, of course, based on the title of the singer’s track with Artful Dodger, ‘Re-Rewind’.
But the show ended up being slammed and the R&B star blasted Francis' comedy as 'bullying'.
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“It felt like a vendetta and when it got a following, it became something that affected me,” he told The Sunday Times back in 2022.
“People would shout at me on the street and I felt the same feeling I had when I was bullied at school. Leigh Francis had normalised bullying by making it comedy.”
With the star wearing the latex masks to depict the different celebrities, David said: “When he put blackface on, that was being racist.”
He added that he ended up moving to Miami in 2009 to ‘get away physically from the David who everyone thought wore a colostomy bag and had a big rubber face and gigantic chin’.
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In June 2020, the show ended up being taken down from Channel 4’s streaming site following backlash over its use of blackface.
And an apology was given by Francis who shared a video, apologising to ‘anyone that was offended by Bo’ Selecta!’
“My name’s Leigh Francis. I play a character called Keith Lemon on television,” the 51-year-old said in the video.
“It’s been a weird few days, I’ve sat and thought about things and what I could post to help things. Back in 2002, I did a show called Bo’ Selecta, I portrayed many black people. Back then I didn’t think anything about it, people didn’t say anything- I’m not going to blame other people.
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“I’ve been talking to some people. I didn’t realise how offensive it was back then.
“I just want to apologise, I just want to say sorry for any upset I caused whether I was Michael Jackson, Craig David, Trisha Goddard, all people I’m a big fan of. I guess we’re all on a learning journey.”
However, David claimed that Francis hadn't 'reached out' to him.
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In 2022, Francis encouraged the singer to move on from the matter.
Speaking to The Sun, he said he'd believed they'd 'buried the hatchet' and 'hugged it out' back in 2014 after he 'bumped into him' at Fearne Cotton's wedding.
The comedian said: "Most people are happy with their portrayal on Bo’ Selecta!
“Apart from someone we know who wasn’t.
"The only way it’s ever going to go away from him, if he feels people are going on about it, is to stop talking about it.'
"It’s ages ago, isn’t it? It is, 20 years ago. I wish he wasn’t upset."
LADbible has contacted Francis’ and David's reps for comment.
Topics: Keith Lemon, Channel 4, Craig David, Celebrity, TV and Film
Jess Battison