Gregg Wallace apologises over ‘middle-class women’ rant & says he’ll ‘take time out’ during ‘sexual comments’ probe

GREGG Wallace has apologized for his speech about “middle class women of a certain age”.

Former MasterChef host Gregg says he will “take time” during an investigation into his alleged sexist comments on the show.

Gregg Wallace apologized in a post on Instagram

Gregg Wallace resigns amid investigation into ‘sexual comments’ Credit: BBC

Gregg with his MasterChef co-host John Torode Credit: BBC

He also presented MasterChef: The Professionals with Marcus Wareing and Monica GalettiCredit: PA

Gregg is facing a backlash after mounting a disastrous defense of his behavior yesterday.

He said: “I’ve been doing MasterChef for 20 years now. Amateur, celebrity and professional MasterChef.

“In that time I have worked with more than 4,000 competitors of different ages, backgrounds and walks of life.

“Now I read in the newspaper that at that time there were 13 complaints.

“I see them coming from a few middle-class women of a certain age just from Celebrity MasterChef. That’s not right.

“In 20 years of TV, can you imagine how many women on MasterChef have made sexual remarks or sexual innuendos?”

But he has now posted an apology on his Instagram account – saying he was under “a lot of stress”.

He said: “I want to apologize for any offense I caused with my post yesterday and for any upset I may have caused many people.

“I wasn’t in a good place when I announced it. I was under a lot of stress, a lot of emotions.”

In a post this afternoon, he added: “I felt very lonely and under siege yesterday when I posted it.

“It’s obvious to me that I need to take some time off while this investigation is ongoing.

“I hope you understand and I hope you accept this apology.”

Wallace stepped down from the BBC1 cookery show last week after complaints of inappropriate behavior over a number of years.

It is understood the BBC was alerted to Gregg’s sexist behavior at least five times over seven years.

BBC officials conducted an HR investigation in 2018 and spoke to the star several times about the inappropriate comments.

Insiders told the Telegraph that the BBC was trying to “manage risk” rather than deal with reported problems, leading to “monumental mistakes”.

One said: “The priority is always to protect those most important to them.”

The BBC said: “We take any issues that come to us seriously and have robust processes in place to deal with them.

“We have always been clear that any behavior that falls below the standards expected by the BBC will not be tolerated.

“When an individual is hired directly by an outside production company, we share any complaints or concerns with that company.”

The spokesman added: “We will always support them when we reach out to them.

“It would be inappropriate for us to comment on anything that could be part of or otherwise affect Banijay’s ongoing investigation.”

Celebrity MasterChef 2012 winner Emma Kennedy said she reported Wallace’s behavior to a member of the production team but did not know if it was followed up on.

Georgia Harding, producer of MasterChef from 2014 to 2015, said she raised concerns about his behavior but no action was taken.

In 2017, radio presenter Aasmah Mir got into the celebrity version and emailed Kate Phillips, now head of unscripted television for the BBC, about Wallace’s inappropriate comments.

In 2018, Wallace was reportedly issued a formal warning by the BBC following an HR investigation.

In 2022, director and producer Dawn Elrick said she sent a letter to the corporation with a number of anonymized accounts from people who claimed Wallace had acted inappropriately.

The Sun reported on Sunday how Nestlé’s chief executive had written to the BBC with concerns about Wallace’s behavior during the filming of an episode of Inside The Factory in 2023.

‘ARROGANT’

Ulrika Jonsson led a furious backlash against Gregg yesterday after he mounted a disastrous defense of his behaviour.

Writer Suna Ulrika called Wallace, 60, “ignorant and arrogant” after he posted a video in which he blamed “middle-class women of a certain age” for complaining about him.

Other celebrities who were stunned by Wallace’s incredible enunciation included JK Rowling and Kirstie Allsopp.

Location, Location, Location star Kirstie said he once left her shaken by a nasty anecdote about a sex act.

His comments sparked a furious reaction from Ulrike, 57, who previously accused Wallace of “joking” about being raped on the set of Celebrity MasterChef 2017.

She said, “I’m nothing but seething. Somewhere in his misogynistic, reckless, ancient mind he saw fit to tell the world this.

“Oh, Gregg. Your ignorance and arrogance knows no bounds. First, you have no idea what ‘class’ of women are who complained about you.

“What we can confirm is that they are far more classy than you will ever be.

“Secondly, when you talk about women of a ‘certain age’, it usually refers to my generation.

“Generation X, the older ones, the ones who supposedly quietly passed into old age.

“And yet, the irony is that we are probably the toughest group in the world.

“We were raised on a diet of sexist, misogynistic, crude and sleazy comments and physical contact that was always superfluous to Wallace-like demands, our entire working lives.”

Ulrika claimed he reduced the contestant to tears by saying her dish “looked like a rapist during foreplay”.

And yesterday she criticized the BBC for allowing him to stay on television for so long.

She said: “As much as the BBC thinks this ‘cheeky guy’ is popular with the public because of his simplicity, it’s just not good enough to deflect any complaints with the excuse that ‘Gregg is like that’.”

‘RABIBLE AND DEVELOPING’

It comes after MasterChef producers Banijay UK hired legal firm Lewis Silkin to investigate the allegations.

Wallace was also charged with further acts of misconduct yesterday.

Kirstie posted: “Within an hour of meeting Gregg Wallace, he told me about a sex act he and his partner enjoyed ‘every morning.’

“She just left the room, we were filming the pilot. Did he get away with how embarrassed I was? It was totally unprofessional.

“I’m a #MiddleClassWomanOfaCertainAge.”

She added later on Radio 4 that his video ranting about the complainant’s class was “unacceptable”.

Kirstie said: “I absolutely understand the banter. I am the mother of sons – two stepsons, two sons. But there’s a huge difference between a tough talk and the kind of comments Gregg Wallace made to me.”

Times Radio presenter Aasmah Mir said she complained at the time about an inappropriate comment Wallace made on Celebrity MasterChef 2017.

She posted: “I put my first dish in front of the judges and the cameras paused to reset. In front of everyone, Gregg Wallace told me to tell my colleague from the BBC ‘that she was a sexy bitch’. “Nobody said anything. And yes, I complained.”

Former Labor Minister Baroness Harman wrote online: “It’s not like the standards have changed. Women have always felt terrified of predatory, lecherous men.

“It’s just that now women feel up to the challenge. Older middle-class women are more up to the challenge than young single women. That’s our duty.”

Wallace was also widely mocked for his video attack and advised to “listen” instead.

Harry Potter author JK Rowling declared: “If only his co-stars had been young working-class women, ideally with some job security, none of this would have happened.”

Host Julia Hartley-Brewer added: “Think of Gregg Wallace’s PR agent waking up this morning,’ alongside a meme of Chandler from Friends yelling, ‘What did you just do?’”

Independent MP Rosie Duffield said his rant “suggests he does not understand the potential offense caused to colleagues who may have felt powerless to speak out”.

Chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall told the BBC yesterday: “I understand the instinct when you feel cornered… but I don’t think it’s wise to say that… I think Wallace should be listening at the moment.”

SLEAZE CLAIMS

At least 13 people have made formal complaints about Wallace’s behavior while working with him over 17 years on five shows, from 2005 to 2022.

Wallace is accused of removing his top in front of the worker, saying he wanted to “put her on a fashion show” and telling others about his sex life.

Allegedly, he also told a female colleague that he does not wear any boxers under his jeans.

Wallace denied any conduct of a sexually harassing nature.

He will headline two pre-recorded MasterChef specials for the BBC over the festive period, despite the investigation.

Wallace poses in a Christmas shirt alongside co-host John Torode for the Celebrity MasterChef Christmas Cook Off and MasterChef Meets Strictly Festive Extravaganza.

The BBC promises “fireworks and a great Christmas joke”.