LONDON: The BBC said it would no longer work with one of the presenters of a popular cooking show after an inquiry upheld numerous complaints of sexual harassment against him.

The lengthy probe substantiated 45 out of 83 accusations against Gregg Wallace from the long-running “MasterChef”. The probe was commissioned by production company Banijay after more than a dozen people came forward in November to complain of his behaviour since 2005.

The inquiry’s report validated, among others, 16 claims that he made sexually explicit comments, 12 instances of inappropriate jokes, seven allegations of bullying and three complaints that he was found in a state of undress. It also confirmed one allegation of unwanted touching.

The BBC has apologised to everyone affected by Wallace’s behaviour and said in a statement on Monday it has “no plans” to work with him in the future. “The investigation details a substantial number of allegations of inappropriate conduct spanning 19 years. This behaviour falls below the values of the BBC and the expectations we have for anyone who works with or for us,” it added.

Wallace, 60, has repeatedly denied the accusations, but sparked a further backlash last year when he blamed them on “a handful of middle-class women of a certain age”.

He said in a statement that “none of the serious allegations against me were upheld”.

“I challenged the remaining issue of unwanted touching but have had to accept a difference in perception, and I am deeply sorry for any distress caused. It was never intended,” he said. Last week, he wrote on Instagram that he had been hired as the “cheeky greengrocer”, a person with “warmth, character and rough edges” but now in a “sanitised world, that same personality is seen as a problem”.

Published in Dawn, July 15th, 2025