Lorraine Kelly has voiced her opinions on the allegations against MasterChef host Gregg Wallace, which he firmly refutes.
Referring to Gregg’s recent statement, the ITV presenter suggested: “You know, just sometimes, just don’t, have a dignified silence. and collect yourself.”
“I mean, I am quite astounded that he made that statement. Is nobody advising him? Is nobody saying, ‘Shut up, just be quiet right now?'”
Lorraine went on to say: “I’ll tell you what his lawyer has said, ‘It is entirely false that he, Gregg, engages in behaviour of a sexually harassing nature’, that is what his lawyer said.
“The BBC has stated, ‘It would be wrong to report the BBC has done nothing if or when matters have been raised with us – not least because it is already been widely reported there were interventions in both 2017 and 2018 where action was taken’.”
The accusations against Gregg include claims that the presenter spoke: “openly about his sex life, removed his top in front of a female employee, stating he wanted to ‘give her a fashion show’, and informed a junior female colleague that he wasn’t wearing any boxer shorts under his jeans.”
The BBC has launched an inquiry following concerns raised over past misconduct allegations linked to presenter Gregg on one of their programmes.
The statement released explained: “This week, the BBC received complaints from individuals in relation to historical allegations of misconduct while working with presenter Gregg Wallace on one of our shows. Whilst these complainants have not raised the allegations directly with our show producers or parent company Banijay UK, we feel that it is appropriate to conduct an immediate, external review to fully and impartially investigate. While this review is underway, Gregg Wallace will be stepping away from his role on MasterChef and is committed to fully cooperating throughout the process.
“Banijay UK’s duty of care to staff is always a priority and our expectations regarding behaviour are made clear to both cast and crew on all productions, with multiple ways of raising concerns, including anonymously, clearly promoted on set. Whilst these are historical allegations, incidences brought to our attention where these expectations are not met are thoroughly investigated and addressed appropriately.”
The BBC has said it takes any issues raised with it “seriously” after it was announced that Gregg would step away from his role on MasterChef. At the same time, the corporation investigated complaints made to it by individuals about historical allegations of misconduct.
A BBC spokesperson stated: “We take any issues that are raised with us seriously and we have robust processes in place to deal with them. We are always clear that any behaviour which falls below the standards expected by the BBC will not be tolerated. Where an individual is contracted directly by an external production company, we share any complaints or concerns with that company, and we will always support them when addressing them.”
Gregg also addressed the allegations over the weekend. The TV presenter told his social media followers in a video: “I think in that time I have worked with over 4,000 contestants of all different ages, all different backgrounds, all walks of life, and apparently now, I’m reading in the paper, there’s been 13 complaints in that time.
“Now, in the newspaper, I can see the complaints coming from a handful of middle-class women of a certain age – just from Celebrity MasterChef. This isn’t right.”
He added in another clip: “Look, this is important to me. 20 years … do you know how many staff, all different sorts of staff, do you know how many staff complained about me in that time? Absolutely none. Zero. Seriously.”
Lorraine airs weekdays at 9am on ITV.