Wallace forced to apologise for 'misogynistic' remarks

Gregg Wallace has been forced to apologise for saying that allegations that he had made inappropriate sexual comments had come from middle-class women of a certain age”, after Downing Street called his explanation inappropriate and misogynistic”.

- ANDY GREGORY

The MasterChef presenter left the programme last week after 13 people came forward with historical allegations about his behaviour over a 17-year period. Several high-profile figures have also shared their experiences in recent days. The 60-year-old faced further criticism after publishing a video on Instagram in which he claimed he could “see the complaints coming from a handful of middle-class women of a certain age, just from Celebrity MasterChef”.

A spokesperson for 10 Downing Street said culture secretary Lisa Nandy had held talks with BBC bosses to discuss the row along with “wider workplace culture issues” and “to seek assurances that there are robust processes in place to deal with complaints”. The spokesperson called the video remarks “inappropriate and misogynistic”.

In a new video yesterday, Wallace said he wished “to apologise for any offence that I caused with my post yesterday and any upset I may have caused to a lot of people”. “I wasn’t in a good headspace when I posted it; I’ve been under a huge amount of stress, a lot of emotion, I felt very alone, under siege yesterday when I posted it,” said the presenter, whose lawyers say it is “entirely false” that he has engaged in “behaviour of a sexually harassing nature”.