Gregg Wallace: My accusers are just
Wallace, 60, has stepped support from presenting MasterChef over accusations he made sexual comments against workers and film star guests on loads of programmes over 17 years.
In a series of movies posted on Instagram earlier than 7am on Sunday, Wallace says he has labored with more than 4,000 contestants “of all heaps of ages, all heaps of backgrounds, all walks of life”.
“It sounds as if now, I’m discovering out within the paper, there’s been 13 complaints in that time,” Wallace says.
“I will be capable of conception the complaints coming from a handful of heart-class females of a certain age, true from Superstar MasterChef. That is now not true.”
His movies occupy triggered outrage online, with presenter Kirstie Allsopp claiming his behaviour changed into “completely unprofessional” when they filmed a TV pilot collectively, signing her post off with ‘#MiddleClassWomanOfACertainAge’.
In a second clip on Sunday, Wallace talked about: “In two decades, over two decades of television, are you able to imagine what number of females, female contestants on MasterChef, occupy made sexual remarks, or sexual innuendo, are you able to imagine?”
His real crew has talked about “it’s miles completely erroneous that he engages in behaviour of a sexually harassing nature”, in a train to BBC News.
Extra allegations occupy emerged since his departure from MasterChef changed into presented on Thursday.
Newsnight presenter Kirsty Wark suggested the BBC quickly afterwards that she saw Wallace “exercise sexualised language in entrance of a necessity of folks” when she looked on Superstar MasterChef in 2011.
Singer Sir Rod Stewart criticised Wallace on Instagram and claimed he “humiliated” his predominant other Penny Lancaster in 2021.
As a heart-class lady of a certain age, who am I to resolve?
Arts and leisure correspondent
There may be a certain irony to how unintentionally humorous Greg Wallace’s most up-to-date social media repost is.
It is miles a bin-fire of an Instagram post. Sufficient to leave these with simplest the loosest of grasps of disaster administration originate-mouthed.
Reasonably than a weekend of self-reflection, after a bruising week reputationally, the presenter has as a alternative opted to hit-out at one of many principal demographics of his mark – “heart-class females of a certain age”.
The most glaring present function support to him being – who does he assume watches MasterChef?
However then in all probability he’s now opting to embody a recent target market, these who’re struggling – indulge in Gregg – to comprehend what he may well need carried out frightful.
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Wallace talked about ‘sex act’ on space
In her post on Sunday, Allsopp talked about: “Interior 1 hour of meeting Gregg Wallace he suggested me of a sex act that he and his accomplice at the time loved ‘every morning’, she’d true left the room, we occupy been filming a pilot.”
Comic David Baddiel furthermore commented on X: “Or now not it’s now not frequently that the online gets at the support of heart-class heart-well-liked females within the period in-between, nonetheless due to the Gregg Wallace for making it occur.”
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‘Zero complaints,’ says Wallace
Wallace is yet to immediately address any of the allegations nonetheless posted a 3rd video on Sunday, announcing: “Enact what number of workers made a criticism about me in that time? Totally none. Zero. Critically.”
On Saturday, the manufacturing firm that makes MasterChef, Banijay UK, known as for anyone wishing to file allegations of misconduct to contact Lewis Silkin, a real firm appointed to manual an investigation.
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Comments occupy been ‘lewd’ and ‘filthy’
TV director and producer Morning time Elrick suggested Sky News several female manufacturing workers complained to her about Wallace’s behavior.
She talked about females issue a pattern of behaviour that amounted to “bragging in a heightened sexual advance” and the utilization of graphic language she describes as “lewd” and “pretty filthy” – on occasion when cameras occupy been peaceable rolling.
Ms Elrick talked about she compiled the allegations in a letter to the BBC, who spoke back asking for more files and proof.
However she talked about the response “style of true disregarded the purpose” because, for manufacturing workers, coming forward is “very bright”.
Ms Elrick described the allegations against Wallace as “indulge in the kind of ‘originate secrets and systems'”. “I will be capable of now not conception that they [the BBC] haven’t known about this for a whereas,” she added.
Wallace’s representatives occupy been approached for a response to Ms Elrick’s comments.
Wallace dropped by charity
Banijay previously talked about Wallace has “dedicated to completely co-working in some unspecified time in the future of the direction of” after the BBC received complaints over “historic allegations of misconduct”.
On Friday, the charity Formidable About Autism talked about it has dropped him as an ambassador, citing the “recent allegations”.
The presenter has three kids and his youngest, five-year-venerable Sid, is non-verbal and autistic.
In October, Wallace spoke back to stories that a outdated BBC review had chanced on he may well proceed working at the company after stories of an alleged incident in 2018 when he looked on Very now not likely Celebrities.
Wallace talked about on Instagram these claims had been investigated “promptly” at the time and talked about he had now not talked about “the leisure sexual” whereas showing on the game enlighten.
In a video posted on Thursday about the recent allegations, he talked about: “I would indulge in to thank your whole americans coming into contact, reaching out and showing their make stronger. Or now not it’s finest-wanting of you, thanks very unparalleled.”
BBC has ‘sturdy processes’
A BBC spokesperson talked about: “We take cling of any points which would be raised with us severely and we occupy now sturdy processes in situation to handle them. We’re always definite that any behaviour which falls under the criteria expected by the BBC will now not be tolerated.
“Where an person is shriveled immediately by an external manufacturing firm we piece any complaints or concerns with that firm and we can always make stronger them when addressing them.
“It’d be unfriendly for us to touch upon the leisure that may well make part of Banijay’s ongoing investigation or otherwise affect it.”