MasterChef star Gregg Wallace’s wife, Anne-Marie Sterpini, has shown her support for her husband by proudly displaying her wedding ring amidst allegations of misconduct against him.
The 60-year-old presenter is currently facing an external review over historical allegations of harassment, including fresh claims he touched a woman’s bottom at an event and pressed his crotch against another while filming a different show.
His legal team has firmly denied these accusations, stating it is “entirely false that he engages in behaviour of a sexually harassing nature”. Despite the controversy, Anne-Marie, 38, who married Wallace in 2016, after they first connected on X, is standing by her husband, the Mirror reports.
The couple, who share four-year-old son named Sid, have a unique relationship with a 22-year age gap and an unconventional living arrangement that includes Anne-Marie’s parents. Wallace has previously described meeting Anne-Marie as like “winning the lottery” and suggested his wife needed some extra help around the house so she could remain his “fun, sexy girlfriend” after becoming a mother.
TV chef Gregg Wallace has opened up about his family life, revealing that in addition to his son Sid, he has two other children, Libby and Tom, from his second marriage to former pastry chef Denise. The couple were married from 1999 until their separation in 2004.
Prior to this, Wallace had a brief six-week marriage with his first wife, Christine, in 1991. He also experienced a short-lived union with Heidi Brown from 2011 to 2012, which he later referred to as a “huge mistake”.
However, it’s his fourth wife, Anne-Marie, who has made a significant positive impact on his life, aiding him in a remarkable five-stone weight loss. During an appearance on Good Morning Britain in January, Wallace gushed about his younger wife, saying: “That young woman has revolutionised my life, there’s a 22-year age gap, we have been together ten years and have a son, Sid, and I want to be there for them.”
Wallace hasn’t shied away from discussing his love story, detailing how an online interaction over a culinary question sparked their romance. Anne-Marie’s curiosity about whether rhubarb complemented duck, after watching Wallace on a cooking show, led to their initial connection.
Speaking to HELLO! Magazine, Wallace reminisced: “I just looked at Anna’s photo and thought, ‘Wow, she’s pretty’. So yes, rhubarb, which was considered an aphrodisiac in medieval times, brought us together.”
He expanded on their relationship during an interview on ITV’s Lorraine, sharing that they progressed from Twitter exchanges to texting, ultimately developing their relationship further.
Yet, Anne-Marie wasn’t convinced until their first face-to-face encounter. He recounted: “She came down to London to have dinner with me, and she said it wasn’t until we got to the restaurant, that she was comfortable it was really me and not an impostor.”
The couple exchanged vows at Hever Castle in August 2016 following a three-year romance, in the presence of MasterChef colleagues such as John Torode, who served as the best man, and guests Lisa Faulkner, Marcus Wareing, and Monica Galetti.
On the White Wine Question Time podcast with Kate Thornton, he reflected on his experiences with love: “What has love taught me? That it is an absolute game of chance and that is it. It is a complete and utter lottery. I am very fortunate I got the winning ticket. I won the Euro Millions the day that young lady walked into my life.”
Regardless of this being his fourth marriage, the culinary critic wanted it known that he took his relationship seriously and wasn’t hasty about remarrying.
Speaking to HELLO! Magazine, he expressed: “Meeting Anna has brought me what I think I’ve always been searching for – that big, warm family dynamic and there’s real strength in that.
“I’m very conscious of people thinking I just do this willy-nilly. But we haven’t rushed into this – we’ve been together for three years and I truly have never met anyone like Anna.” He also gushed that she was his “dream girl” and is “beautiful inside and out”.
Since their marriage, Wallace and his wife have openly talked about their significant age difference, often sharing light-hearted moments about it. One particularly amusing instance was shared on the show Loose Women, where panellist Judi Love quizzed Wallace about being an older father.
In response, he humorously remarked: “Baby Sid. You haven’t met Mrs Wallace but I was really pleased she had a baby because it’s someone at home more her own age to talk to.”
The couple had to confront the issue of having children early in their relationship due to their age gap. In a candid discussion with Event Magazine, Wallace expressed the realities of falling for a younger partner by saying: “When you fall in love with a younger woman, you’ve got to realise that the chances are they are going to want a family.
“I remember [her] saying to me, ‘I’m going to want to get married and have children. If that’s not what you want, then don’t mess me about’.”
Adding an unconventional twist to their living situation, the presenter disclosed how they reside in his £1 million Kent mansion alongside Anne-Marie’s parents, Rina and Massimo. Speaking to the Daily Mail in 2020, Wallace divulged how this arrangement came into place following his wife’s desire to start a family.
He opened up about their unconventional family arrangement and his relationship with his wife Anna’s mother, Rina. “I said: ‘Yes, I’m willing to have a baby with you, but a couple of provisos…I’m not willing to swap my fun, sexy girlfriend for an exhausted mum.
“We make enough money, I’d like you to get help in the house.’ Anna said ‘What about my mum? ‘ That was perfect,” he disclosed.
He further explained that Anna’s parents also contribute by taking their grandson Sid into their room for half the week, allowing the couple some along time. The celebrity cherishes the bond he shares with his almost age-mate mother-in-law.
He told The Sun: “I love Rina – we have such a giggle. We are roughly the same age. Me and Rina remember the same TV shows and sing the same 1970s pop songs.
“Anna doesn’t know what we are talking about. We were singing Boney M at breakfast this morning and Anna has no idea.”.
However, he is currently embroiled in controversy following fresh accusations of harassment. One woman alleges Wallace groped her bottom after an event, while another claims he pushed his groin against her during filming for a different series.
A group of thirteen people from various shows over a 17-year period have also ascribed improper sexual remarks to him, as reported by BBC News. Among them is former Newsnight presenter Kirsty Wark, who contends that he made sexually suggestive jokes while she was on Celebrity MasterChef in 2011.
Earlier this week, it was revealed that Gregg Wallace is “committed to fully co-operating” with an external review initiated by MasterChef’s production company, Banijay UK. A 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.”
It continued: “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.”
The statement further detailed that during the investigation, Gregg Wallace will step back from his role on MasterChef and will assist fully with the process.
Emphasising the importance of staff welfare, the statement noted: “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.”
Addressing the nature of the allegations, it added: “Whilst these are historical allegations, incidences brought to our attention where these expectations are not met are thoroughly investigated and addressed appropriately.”
The statement concluded with an invitation for anyone wishing to discuss issues or concerns to contact [email protected] confidentially.
On Monday, Wallace issued an apology for previously describing the complaints about his behaviour as coming from “a handful of middle-class women of a certain age”, and announced he would “take some time out”.
Get the latest celebrity gossip and telly news sent straight to your inbox. Sign up to our daily Showbiz newsletter here.