Gregg Wallace and John Torode branded ‘divine and lovely’ by former Celebrity MasterChef star amid sacking saga
Toyah Willcox has chimed in on the MasterChef drama, after hosts John Torode and Gregg Wallace were consecutively sacked by the BBC for inappropriate behaviour and racism.
Wallace, 60, was fired after over 40 complaints of inappropriate behavior were upheld following an investigation by the BBC into his conduct. Only a day later Torode, 59, was let go over claims he used the N-word, despite protesting he had never used the slur in his life.
As the dust settled, the former Celebrity MasterChef contestant opened up about her experience on the show whilst working alongside the disgraced duo.
Appearing on the Spooning With Mark Wogan podcast, she said: “I did MasterChef with both Gregg and John, and they were divine. They were lovely to be with.”
“I’ve not seen what they’re supposed to have done” she added, ” but it doesn’t mean they didn’t do it.
“I just don’t know, and I’m very protective towards women, especially having done Strictly a year after Amanda Abbington had what happened to her. I want to support Amanda and I also want to work, so…”
Mark, the son of Sir Terry Wogan, probed the singer: “Isn’t that funny though that you still feel that by openly supporting women you threaten your ability to continue working?
“Well, that’s what I’m picking up from what you just said.”
A producer for MasterChef described the events of the double sacking to the BBC, claiming “Everyone is reeling.”
“I’m in shock with it all. It’s raw, and fresh,” added the anonymous member of production staff.
BBC News also discovered Torode had nine complaints against him, including racist language, abusive language to junior production staff and sexual language. However, only one claim was upheld.
Insiders also report the relationship between the greengrocer and Australian chef had completely broken down, alleging Wallace was briefing against Torode.
BBC culture reporter, Noor Nanji, caught wind of the situation over a year ago when she got a tip-off about a BBC presenter said to have been behaving badly, which later turned out to be Wallace.
Labelled “the biggest open secret in TV”, BBC News revealed the allegations in November after months of interviews. Nanji recalls when the story broke: “There was a sense that the MasterChef production team were defensive and wanted to ride out the storm.”
She added: “Many who had worked with Wallace for years felt that responding would make it worse, hoping BBC News was just stirring up trouble and the story would go away.
“There was a view that Wallace’s career could be saved, and his worst behaviour was in the past. Others in the production team were in disbelief.”
BBC’s director general Tim Davie insisted the BBC are drawing “a line in the sand” following Torode’s use of unacceptable racist language.
Max Goldbart, international TV editor at Deadline, said to BBC News that Torode “had been caught up in the new ‘first strike and you’re out’ policy by the powers-that-be at the BBC”.
“I wouldn’t say Torode was collateral damage, I’d say that’s offensive to the people who came forward,” he added.
Torode was fired a day after Wallace, allegedly only catching wind of his own sacking via media outlets.
Despite the controversy, the BBC are still planning to air the series of MasterChef starring both Torode and Wallace.
There has been no news on who will replace the star, but rumoured favourites are Grace Dent, Marcus Wareing, and Monica Galetti.