Gregg Wallace will not return as a presenter on the BBC program MasterChef. The producer shares this following the results of an investigation into allegations of inappropriate behavior. According to the investigation, 45 of the 83 complaints are justified.
The investigation results show that the majority of the justified complaints occurred between 2005 and 2018. Most concern allegations of inappropriate sexual language and humor.
Producer Banijay UK says it does not want to give “further details about the individual allegations,” but does say that Wallace’s return to MasterChef is “untenable given the number of justified allegations.” The investigation also shows that between 2005 and 2024, six complaints were filed with the producer and six with the BBC itself. Both companies acknowledge that the handling of complaints was not in order and offer apologies.
Wallace was accused of transgressive behavior by several women in late 2024. Banijay UK hired the British law firm Lewis Silkin to investigate. Wallace already stepped down as presenter of MasterChef in November last year, which he presented between 2005 and 2024.
BBC News reported last week that Wallace had been fired following the investigation. The presenter responded via Instagram by stating that he had been acquitted of the “most serious” accusations in the report. He did acknowledge that his “humor and language were sometimes inappropriate.” He apologized for this.