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Gregg Wallace is facing widespread backlash over the response he gave to the allegations of historic workplace misconduct that have been made against him.
Last week, it was announced that the MasterChef host would be stepping away from the show while production company Banijay conducted “an immediate, external review to fully and impartially investigate” complaints that had been made to the BBC regarding his behaviour.
In a video posted to his Instagram story in the early hours of on Sunday morning, he said: “I’ve been doing MasterChef for 20 years – amateur, professional and celebrity – and I think in that time I have worked with over 4,000 contestants of all different ages, all different backgrounds, all walks of life.
“And apparently now, I’m reading in the paper, there’s been 13 complaints in that time. Now, in the newspaper I can see the complaints coming from a handful of middle-class women of a certain age just from Celebrity MasterChef. This isn’t right.”
“In over 20 years of television, can you imagine how many women, female contestants on MasterChef, have made sexual remarks or sexual innuendo – can you imagine?” he concluded.
In a separate post, he added: “[I’ve done] twenty years [of] Celebrity MasterChef, amateur, professional, Eat Well for Less, Inside the Factory. Do you know how many staff – all different sorts of staff, you imagine the people I’ve worked with – complained about me in that time? Absolutely none. Zero. Seriously.”
Gregg’s choice to label the complainants as “middle-class women of a certain age” has sparked controversy, including from some of the accusers.
Former Celebrity MasterChef winner Emma Kennedy – who says she previously complained about Gregg’s conduct behind the scenes – told BBC News: “It doesn’t matter what the age of any woman is. Playing the ‘they’re having a go at me because I’m working class’ card is ridiculous.”
Gregg Wallace with co-star John TorodeAn anonymous female accuser also accused the former Strictly Come Dancing contestant of “trying to minimise and dismiss the people who have bravely come forward”.
“He clearly hasn’t learnt his lesson,” she said. “I’m interested to see what consequences he’ll finally be facing from the BBC and [MasterChef production company] Banijay UK for his behaviour towards women of all ages.
“While they decide, maybe Gregg should use this time to reflect on and take some accountability for how he abused his position of power instead of adding flames to the fire on social media.”
BBC News also quoted a man who’d made a complaint, who said: “From my perspective, [his humour’s] main purpose is to test boundaries, make other people (especially women) uncomfortable, and display his power within the room.
“And it’s not just women who are offended – plenty of men are too, it’s just that far too few of them have the host called out on his bad behaviour.”
Kirstie Allsopp has also alleged that she had an inappropriate exchange with Gregg years earlier, telling Radio 4: “He is essentially saying this is a class issue and middle-class women don’t understand the type of things he says because he’s working-class.”
HuffPost UK has contacted Gregg Wallace’s team for comment.
A Banijay UK spokesperson said last week: “Whilst these complainants have not raised the allegations directly with our show producers or parent company Banijay UK, we feel that it is appropriate to conduct an immediate, external review to fully and impartially investigate.
“While this review is under way, Gregg Wallace will be stepping away from his role on MasterChef and is committed to fully co-operating throughout the process. Whilst these are historical allegations, incidences brought to our attention where these expectations are not met, are thoroughly investigated and addressed appropriately.”
A BBC rep also said: “We take any issues that are raised with us seriously and we have robust processes in place to deal with them.
“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.”
Gregg has been part of MasterChef since 2008, presenting the show and its celebrity counterpart, as well as judging, alongside John Torode.
BBC News reported last week that the current series of MasterChef: The Professionals – in which Gregg also appears – will continue to air as scheduled during Banijay UK’s investigation.
