Gregg Wallace’s fall from grace continues, amid accusations that he sent “pervy” and “creepy” messages, including voicemails, to a woman 20 years younger than him, who he met at an awards ceremony.
Penny Lancaster has joined the wave of people criticising Gregg Wallace in recent days and weeks. She accused him of harassment and bullying on Loose Women today (December 12).
A Place In The Sun star Jean Johansson said she found him constantly inappropriate while she competed on MasterChef in 2018.
Meanwhile, Ainsley Harriott issued a statement in support of Wallace. He said the “whole crew, including Gregg, was fantastic” in his experience. However, he doesn’t want to take over as host of MasterChef.
Gregg Wallace accused of sending ‘pervy’ voice messages to woman
The Guardian reports that it has spoken to a female reporter who claimed she met Gregg Wallace at an awards ceremony in London in 2009.
Wallace was presenting The Grocer magazine’s Own-Label Excellence Awards.
A junior reporter for the magazine, then 26 years old, interviewed him at the event. She told The Guardian that he offered her his number, on the grounds that he could be a good contact for her as a journalist.
She said she had a “slightly icky” feeling. This grew when she received messages from him addressing her as “gorgeous”, the paper alleges, and asking if she wanted to kiss him.
After the event, she received “a lot of voicemails” containing “innuendoes about food and tasting and eating”.
She added that she didn’t, at any point, feel threatened or unsafe. However, she felt uncomfortable and “grossed out”. She also remembers telling her friends she felt as if he was stalking her.
The magazine’s editor, Adam Leyland, told the Guardian he decided not to work with Wallace – who was 45 at the time – going forward.
“Of course I remember,” he said. “I’ve been telling my friends for years about how pervy he was and the HR issue he created with one of my staff, because he was sexually harassing her.”
ED! has contacted Gregg’s reps for comment.
TV chef James Martin tipped to replace Gregg Walace on MasterChef
Gregg Wallace stepped down from hosting duties on MasterChef in November.
His decision to leave the BBC show came after allegations of inappropriate sexual comments from more than a dozen individuals who worked with him over the years.
He hosted MasterChef for 19 years. An investigation is underway, during which Wallace has said he’ll take a break from public life.
Meanwhile, he has committed to fully co-operating throughout the process, his lawyers say. They deny that he engages in behaviour of a sexually harassing nature.
According to betting website BetFred, as of December 7, James Martin is the frontrunner to replace Wallace on MasterChef. The odds are 5/2. John Torode is sticking with the show, and his wife is a popular choice to join him.
The public have also been voting for TV chefs Nigella Lawson and Gino D’Acampo. They have odds of 4/1 and at 5/1 respectively.
Read more: Richard Osman performs Gregg Wallace U-turn after ‘sticking up for him’ earlier this year
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