This Morning chef Gino D’Acampo has been accused of “sexually inappropriate” behaviour and a tense exchange between he and former ITV star Phillip Schofield has now re-emerged
The awkward moment Phillip Schofield told off Gino D’Acampo for a rude joke has re-emerged as the chef now faces claims of “sexually inappropriate” behaviour.
The 48-year-old This Morning star and TV chef faces allegations from “dozens” of people spanning over 12 years. His alleged behaviour has been described as “unacceptable, distressing and horrendous” and now ITV has pulled the star’s shows from their schedule.
The claims emerged from an ITV News probe and come from people who allegedly worked with Gino. He has “firmly denied” the allegations and said they are “deeply upsetting”.
And now, a clip from This Morning in 2013 sees Gino get into hot water with former This Morning host Phillip, who himself left ITV after it emerged he’d had an affair with a much-younger ITV employee. Gino was cooking a dish for Phillip and former This Morning host Holly Willoughby.
However, he appeared to cross the line as he upset co-star Phillip with a suggestive remark about ‘tough meat’ and ‘making love to your wife’. The footage shows Phillip saying: “We do not want tense meat” as he stirs a sauce.
Gino agrees, telling the pair: “We don’t want that because tense meat, it becomes tough meat. Right?” Phillip, turning to the camera, says: “Tense meat is a friend to no one.”
Gino, who was stood next to Holly, added: “No seriously, tense meat it comes a tough meat. That’s why you should never annoy your wife before you make love. You want her to be nice and soft.”
Holly raised an eyebrow at Gino’s sexually-charged joke but didn’t comment on it and instead continued to prepare her dish. However, Phillip seemed upset by Gino and told him off for it. Turning to Gino, he declared: “Now you’ve gone too far. That’s too far.” As Gino insisted he was innocent, Phillip sharply retorted: “That’s a step too far.”
It comes after dozens have accused Gino of inappropriate behaviour, including one woman who alleged she received vulgar comments from Gino in 2011. She claimed Mr D’Acampo said he would “like to turn me over and f*** me up the a*** against the kitchen counter.” She alleged crew members laughed after he made the comment.
She says she saw the “shock” and “horror”, claiming his alleged behaviour made her feel “very, very, very small”. Speaking to an ITV News Correspondent, the lady shared: “I definitely saw it as some kind of power play. The very act of what he said was aggressive. He did not think that was an inappropriate thing to say to me.”
Responding to the claims, Gino told ITV News: “I have been told by ITN news that allegations have been made about me acting inappropriately, some dating back over ten years ago. I have never been made aware of these matters previously and the allegations are firmly denied. I would not do anything that I thought would upset or distress anyone. This is simply not in my nature. I do not recognise the version of events being put to me.
“Not only have these allegations never been raised with me before, I have been repeatedly supported by executives at the highest level and was commissioned on prime-time programmes during the period in which it is now suggested I was acting inappropriately. I am a father, husband and have worked with well over 1,500 people on around 80 productions in my career, which I have been so proud of. I take such matters extremely seriously and the suggestion that I have acted in an improper way against is deeply upsetting.”
Another woman claimed to the probe: “He opened the door in his boxer shorts, nothing else. And jumped on the bed and was sort of – leg up.” The woman said that she felt “disgusted” after having to “sit there” looking at Gino who allegedly made a reference to his penis, saying: “It’s only small.”
Denying the allegations, Gino’s legal representatives said: “This allegation from almost 15 years ago has never, until now via a media request for comment, been raised or put to Mr D’Acampo. He does not recall it, nor accept that this happened. Mr D’Acampo is horrified to be accused of ‘power play’ and an ‘aggressive act’. He emphatically and unequivocally denies these allegations.”
They added: “Mr D’Acampo categorically denies these allegations of inappropriate sexual behaviour. To his knowledge no such allegations have been made against him in relation to his time on ‘Gino’s Italian Express’ and this is the first time, six years later, he has been informed of these alleged incidents, and he does not accept them, not least because some of this is considered by Mr D’Acampo to be a fabricated work of fiction.”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
