The TV presenter Gregg Wallace will step away from his role on MasterChef after the BBC received complaints about alleged misconduct.
The presenter Kirsty Wark, who was a Celebrity MasterChef contestant in 2011, has alleged that Wallace told “sexualised” jokes during filming. Wallace is facing allegations of inappropriate sexual comments from 13 people who worked with him across a range of shows over a 17-year period, according to an investigation by BBC News.
Wark, a former host of Newsnight, told BBC News that on two occasions during early morning filming Wallace told stories and jokes of a “sexualised nature” in front of contestants and crew. She said she felt strongly that the comments were “really, really in the wrong place”.
“There were two occasions in particular where he used sexualised language in front of a number of people and it wasn’t as if anyone engaged with this,” she said. “It was completely one-way traffic. But I think people were uncomfortable and [it was] something that I really did not expect to happen.”
Other people told the broadcaster that Wallace talked openly about his sex life, once took his top off in front of a female worker saying he wanted to “give her a fashion show”, and told a junior female colleague he wasn’t wearing any boxer shorts under his jeans.
BBC News said it started investigating Wallace in the summer after becoming aware of allegations and it had heard claims related to five shows, from 2005 to 2022.
Wallace’s lawyers said the suggestion that Wallace, who has presented the popular BBC One cooking show alongside John Torode since 2005, engages in behaviour of a sexually harassing nature was entirely false.
Rod Stewart, whose wife, Penny Lancaster, appeared on Celebrity MasterChef in 2021, used his Instagram account later on Thursday to comment on Wallace’s break from the show. Calling him a “tubby, bald-headed, ill-mannered bully”, Stewart said Wallace had humiliated his wife.
He wrote: “So Greg [sic] Wallace gets fired from Master Chef. Good riddance Wallace … You humiliated my wife when she was on the show, but you had that bit cut out didn’t you? You’re a tubby, bald-headed, ill-mannered bully. Karma got ya. Sir Rod Stewart.”
MasterChef’s production company, Banijay UK, said it had launched an investigation after the BBC received complaints about Wallace’s behaviour and said the 60-year-old was “committed to fully cooperating throughout the process”.
The statement said: “While this review is under way, Gregg Wallace will be stepping away from his role on MasterChef and is committed to fully cooperating throughout the process. Banijay UK’s duty of care to staff is always a priority and our expectations regarding behaviour are made clear to both cast and crew on all productions, with multiple ways of raising concerns, including anonymously, clearly promoted on set.”
The company said allegations had not been raised directly with it but it felt “it is appropriate to conduct an immediate external review to fully and impartially investigate”. It said anyone with issues or concerns could contact speakup@banijayuk.com in confidence.
A BBC spokesperson said: “We are always clear that any behaviour which falls below the standards expected by the BBC will not be tolerated. Where an individual is contracted directly by an external production company we share any complaints or concerns with that company and we will always support them when addressing them.”
Ulrika Jonsson also alleged that Wallace had to apologise for making a rape joke during the filming of an episode of Celebrity MasterChef in 2017.
The Swedish-born TV presenter said a fellow contestant complained about the alleged remark, and the issue was raised with the on-set management staff, according to the Daily Telegraph. Wallace later apologised with “tears in his eyes”, the paper reported. The incident was not reported to Banijay.
BBC News also said Wallace had been warned by the BBC after a complaint in 2018, and further incidents had been alleged. In October, Wallace denied claims he boasted about his sex life to a younger female BBC employee and took his top off in front of her, saying he would never “flirt with” or “hit on” another woman.
On Instagram at the time, he said the allegation had been investigated promptly when it happened six years ago by the BBC. He said: “And the outcome of that was that I hadn’t said anything sexual. I’ll need to repeat this again. I didn’t say anything sexual. Despite what the newspapers are suggesting, nobody six years ago accused me of flirting with anybody or hitting on anybody.”
It is understood that a pre-recorded MasterChef: The Professionals featuring Wallace will air as planned on Thursday and the series will continue into December.
The BBC launched an independent review of its workplace culture in October after a series of damaging scandals at the broadcaster that had led to questions being raised about how it prevents abuse by and of those working for it.
