'MasterChef' host Gregg Wallace fired after alleged misconduct
Gregg Wallace, known for co-presenting the cooking reality show MasterChef, has been dismissed following allegations of misconduct.
A BBC report reveals that over 50 individuals have accused Wallace of inappropriate behavior towards colleagues, including claims of groping a MasterChef worker and exposing himself to another.
These claims were investigated by independent law firm Lewis Silkin on behalf of MasterChef's production company, Banijay. The BBC expects the firm's report imminently.
Following the decision, Wallace took to his Instagram account to deny the allegations, stressing that he "cannot sit in silence" while his reputation is "further damaged to protect others."
"My decision to go public now is also driven by the fact the BBC News division [is] intending to platform legally unsafe accusations, including claims which have already been investigated and not upheld by the BBC and found not credible by Silkins," Wallace wrote.
"The BBC is no longer providing balanced and impartial public service journalism. It is peddling baseless and sensationalised gossip masquerading as properly corroborated stories," he added.
He argued that the "most damaging claims" against him "were found to be baseless after a full and forensic six month investigation," explaining that Silkin's report cleared him from all the serious allegations that found him primarily guilty of inappropriate language between 2005 and 2008.
"I recognize that some of my humour and language, at times, [were] inappropriate. For that, I apologize without reservation. But I was never the caricature now being sold for clicks," Wallace wrote, who said he was hired by the broadcasting company and the show as "the cheeky greengrocer". He described himself as "a real person with warmth, character, rough edges and all."
"For over two decades, that authenticity was part of the brand. Now, in a sanitised world, that same personality is seen as a problem," he continued.
Wallace states that his colleagues suspected he had autism, but his condition was never "investigated," nor was he protected from what he now sees as "a dangerous environment."
"That failure is now being quietly buried," he claimed.
"I will not go quietly. I will not be cancelled for convenience. I was tried by media and hung out to dry well before the facts were established. The full story of this incredible injustice must be told and it is very much a matter of public interest," he ended.
According to the BBC, 13 people initially accused him of making inappropriate sexual comments in November last year, which resulted in Wallace being asked to step down from his TV presenter role while investigations were being conducted.
The number of people who have contacted the BBC with new claims has since risen, with 11 women now accusing him of inappropriate sexual behavior, such as groping and touching.
Following Wallace's statement, the BBC said that they are "not going to comment until the investigation is complete and the findings are published."
Apart from MasterChef, Wallace has also appeared in shows sich as Strictly Come Dancing, Celebrity Catchphrase, Tipping Point: Lucky Stars, and more.
