Gregg Wallace has said he is “deeply sorry” after more than half of the claims of inappropriate behaviour against him were upheld in a report by Masterchef’s production company
Sacked MasterChef host Gregg Wallace is reportedly worth a lot of money indeed.
The former BBC star, 60, said he is “deeply sorry for any distress” caused in a statement after 45 complaints about his behaviour on MasterChef were upheld. More than half of the claims of inappropriate behaviour – 45 of the 83 allegations – against him were substantiated.
This came in a report by MasterChef’s production company Banijay UK into historic allegations of misconduct against Wallace. The TV star also told the PA new agency that he “never set out to harm or humiliate” after the report, which revealed claims against him spanning 19 years.
Wallace had been a co-presenter and judge on MasterChef alongside John Torode since 2005. During that time, he has racked up a whopping £5million, according to The Sun in 2023.
It’s also believed the presenter was paid a staggering £250,000 in 2016 for his work on MasterChef – and he also hosted its spin-off, MasterChef: The Professionals. Wallace’s other broadcasting projects include Veg Talk on BBC Radio 4 as well as The Money Programme, and Time Commanders.
In 2021, he bagged his own six-part series called South Africa with Gregg Wallace. His greengrocer business – George Allan’s Greengrocers – had a turnover of £7.5 million at the height of its success. He started the company in 1989.
After leaving the BBC, Wallace is now set to earn money through fitness as he’s trained to become a personal trainer. He said in a video on X: “”Over the last few months, I’ve actually been studying for my PT [personal trainer] qualifications.
“So sometime this summer, I will actually be a qualified personal trainer. A PT at 60. I’ve really enjoyed it. It’s been a lot of hard work but I’ve enjoyed it. Not just the exercise stuff but learning about how the body works, the musculoskeletal system, cardiovascular system as well as what motivates people and nutrition. So I have enjoyed it.”
In 2022, Wallace said he wanted to feel “completely and utterly secure” financially after being homeless as a teenager. He told Gaby Roslin: “I don’t feel safe yet.
“I see a therapist about this, and she said you climbed far higher up the mountain than you were supposed to, so you’re looking down at where you started and you think ‘oh that’s a long way to fall’.
“But there’s no way you can fall all the way back down to being this homeless kid at fifteen, that can’t happen to you now. The worst that can happen is that you fall to the ledge 6 feet below. It’s fear, that’s what drives me. I don’t feel safe, not at the moment.”
He added: “I’ve set a monetary figure on it, we are probably safe now. It’s money. I had none as a youngster and I felt that poverty quite keenly and I felt embarrassed by it on a couple of occasions and that’s a driving force to wanting to achieve, but not so you can have Ferraris and yachts and helicopters and private planes, that’s not what I want. What I want is to feel completely and utterly secure.”
Banijay’s report on Monday (July 14) revealed a series of claims against Wallace. While the majority related to inappropriate sexual language and humour, one related to “unwanted physical contact” and three were about being “in a state of undress”.
The BBC has apologised to “everyone who has been impacted by Mr Wallace’s behaviour”. In a statement, they admitted that “opportunities were missed to address” his conduct.
They said: “We accept more could and should have been done sooner. This behaviour falls below the values of the BBC and the expectations we have for anyone who works with or for us.”
They also confirmed they had cut ties with the presenter and said: “In light of these findings, Banijay UK and the BBC have agreed Mr Wallace’s return to MasterChef is untenable. The BBC has informed Mr Wallace we have no plans to work with him in future.”
Wallace himself said he had been “cleared of the most serious and sensational accusations” made against him. He said “some of (his) humour and language missed the mark” and that” I now see that certain patterns, shaped by traits I’ve only recently begun to understand, may have been misread.”
He said he had received a “late autism diagnosis” which has helped him understand how he is “perceived”. He also criticised the BBC and claimed he had been subjected to a “trial by media”.
Wallace’s lawyers strongly deny the claims made against Wallace. They said: “It is entirely false that he engages in behaviour of a sexually harassing nature.”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
