John Torode breaks silence and says accusations against MasterChef co-star Gregg Wallace are ‘awful to hear’

JOHN Torode has broken his silence – saying the allegations against his MasterChef co-host Gregg Wallace were “horrible to hear”.

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

John Torode said the claims about Gregg Wallace’s behavior were ‘horrible to hear’Credit: Avalon.red

Wallace apologizes for his speech about ‘middle class women’Credit: Enterprise

Gregg Wallace resigns amid ‘sexual comments’ investigation Credit: Enterprise

This afternoon, Torode said that recent reports about his co-host’s alleged behavior “really upset” him.

And the Australian revealed that he will continue to present the program.

Posting on Instagram, he said: “I haven’t filmed MasterChef abroad since last Friday.

“I love my job and I love MasterChef. I love being a part of it and I will continue to be a part of it.

“For the last few days I have been trying to make the best cooking program.

“Being busy with making the show and taking care of our contestants left me little time to think about anything else, but it was difficult.

“It’s a horrifying thought that anyone who appears on our show doesn’t have a brilliant background.”

Torode, 59, added: “I find the recent press reports truly disturbing.

“But I hope everyone appreciates that, the investigation is ongoing.

“I fully support him, so I cannot make any further comments at this stage.

“I hope you all understand and respect my silence on how we move forward.”

Gregg Wallace shoved his groin in my face THREE TIMES while squatting behind the oven on Masterchef – he’s mean, says traumatized contestant

It came after Wallace unfollowed Torode and his wife Lisa Faulkner on Instagram in a public sign of anger at their failure to support him.

A source said: “Gregg is absolutely furious and is convinced he has done nothing wrong.

“Seeing John silent in the middle of all this made him very angry. Gregg and John have been colleagues for almost two decades and although they are not the closest of friends, Gregg feels that John might have something to say.

“He has now deleted them from his Instagram account and unfollowed them both.

“It might seem like a no-brainer to Gregg, but he’s furious about how this all played out.”

John Torode and Gregg Wallace on Masterchef Credit: Shine TV

Yesterday, the BBC finally pulled two MasterChef Christmas specials from its holiday schedule after a backlash.

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

GREGG’S REGRET

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

Gregg faced a firestorm of criticism after issuing a disastrous defense of his behavior on Sunday.

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 handful of 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.”

He added: “I felt very lonely and under siege yesterday when I announced 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 alleged 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 any further action was taken.

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 the demands of the likes of Wallace, 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 TV 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 1 hour of meeting Gregg Wallace he told me about the sex act he and his then partner enjoyed ‘every morning’.

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

“I’m a #MiddleClassWomanOfaCertainAge.”

She later added on Radio 4 that his video ranting about the complainant 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 you’re cornered… but I don’t think it’s smart to say that… I think Wallace should probably 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”.