The ghostwriter of Gregg Wallace’s 2012 autobiography has claimed he sexually harassed her when she was working on the book.
Shannon Kyle told BBC Newsnight that Wallace touched her thigh inappropriately while she was sitting in the passenger seat of his sports car and touched her bottom during an appearance at the Good Food Show.
Lawyers representing Wallace said: “Our client has denied that he has engaged in any such behaviour, and he specifically denies any sexual misconduct with Ms Kyle.”
Kyle was working on Wallace’s 2012 book, Life on a Plate, when she said the MasterChef presenter answered the door wearing only a towel, which he later dropped, made “revolting” and “sickening” sexualised suggestions to her, and touched her inappropriately.
Kyle, who has written a number of books, had signed a non-disclosure agreement (NDA), before beginning the project.
The NDA said the “writer understands that Wallace enjoys a high public profile and her obligations to him of loyalty and confidentiality are therefore of particular significance”.
“I was worried about losing the job,” she told Newsnight. “Because I’d given up all the work for this job. So I thought to myself … I’m just going to try and navigate this, [I’ll] just try and push on through,” she said. “It was just really revolting.”
When the allegations about Wallace’s inappropriate comments and behaviour emerged last week, Kyle said it felt “a long time coming”.
She described his behaviour as “predatory”, and said: “Sometimes you do have to speak up for what’s right.”
The ghostwriter claimed Wallace’s alleged actions had been minimised by some as “cheeky barrow-boy humour” but she described it as “revolting misogyny”.
BBC News last week aired allegations from 13 people spanning a range of ages, who worked across five different programmes, who made allegations of inappropriate sexual comments by Wallace.
People who have come forward with allegations against Wallace include the former BBC Newsnight presenter Kirsty Wark, who said he told stories and jokes of a “sexualised nature” in front of contestants and crew when she was on Celebrity MasterChef.
Melanie Sykes also revealed she made an informal complaint about Wallace, saying that having to work with him on Celebrity MasterChef in 2021 was the reason she quit TV. On Tuesday. the BBC pulled two MasterChef celebrity Christmas specials, a day after Wallace had apologised for dismissing his accusers as “middle-class women of a certain age”, adding he would “take some time out”.
Wallace is facing a series of allegations of past misconduct – including three of inappropriate touching – which are being investigated by MasterChef’s production company, Banijay UK. Previously, Wallace’s lawyers have said he has denied any sexually harassing behaviour.
As the number the allegations against Wallace grew, the BBC pulled its MasterChef Christmas specials and on Wednesday his long time co-host John Torode said he found them “truly upsetting” and welcomed the ongoing investigation.
A BBC spokesperson thanked those who “had the courage to speak out” over allegations about Wallace. It told Newsnight that Banijay UK had launched a review because it had the contractual relationship with Wallace.
“He is not employed by the BBC. When issues have been raised with the BBC we have taken action, referring issues to the relevant production company and challenging his behaviour directly as has been widely reported.”
The new claims emerged as the home secretary, Yvette Cooper, said the allegations made about Wallace’s conduct were “grim”.
She said employers needed to take concerns about “workplace harassment” seriously.
Cooper told Sky News you should “never underestimate women of a certain age”, adding: “Some of the stories we’ve heard really have been quite grim.”
She said it was hard for her to discuss individual cases but “the really, I think, depressing thing is that we hear the same story too many times” about people in positions of power abusing their status and “concerns about workplace harassment just not being taken seriously enough”.
“And we do need employers to take these things seriously,” she added.
On Monday, Wallace apologised for claiming complaints about his behaviour came from “a handful of middle-class women of a certain age”.
