A BBC executive reportedly threatened to fire Gregg Wallace six years ago after the former MasterChef host was warned about his alleged workplace conduct.
Reports emerged earlier this week that the 60-year-old has been “banned” from the broadcaster as executives lacked “confidence” that he would be able to change “what seems to be learned behaviour”.
In the letter of dismissal, sent by the head of compliance for BBC Television, Claire Powell, Wallace was told he would not get a job as a presenter on the channel again, The Telegraph reported.
A fresh report by the publication states that Kate Phillips, the BBC’s current chief content officer, previously told Wallace in 2019 that he would be sacked if any further complaints were raised against him.
Phillips said that the BBC “will not tolerate behaviour to occur on any productions that is inappropriate, unprofessional and/or has the effect on individuals to feel sexually harassed”.
She added: “It would be regrettable and disappointing to learn of any further incidents and in such circumstances, the BBC would need to seriously consider its future working relationship with you.”
The letter is said to have been prompted by allegations about Wallace’s behaviour on Impossible Celebrities and Celebrity MasterChef.
In addition, Wallace was reportedly the subject of a HR review in 2023 due to allegedly making inappropriate comments about staff at a Nestle plant. Although he left the show soon afterwards, a review by production company Voltage TV did not make any findings against him.
Wallace is facing multiple accusations, including claims that he made inappropriate sexual jokes, asked for the phone numbers of female production staff, and behaved unprofessionally around female colleagues on set. He has denied these allegations.
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Earlier this week, Wallace said he had been sacked as Masterchef presenter as BBC News said that it had been approached by more than 50 people with new claims about the presenter.
The claims, which Wallace denies, include allegations that he groped a MasterChef colleague.
The fresh claims come just days before the expected publication of a report by MasterChef production company Banijay, overseen by the law firm Lewis Silkin, into some of the separate claims made last year.
Wallace is now also facing criticism from disability charities for appearing to link his alleged behaviour with a recent autism diagnosis.
In a lengthy statement to Instagram on Tuesday (8 July), the former MasterChef host said that he had been formally diagnosed with autism, and suggested that his neurodiversity was “suspected and discussed by colleagues across countless seasons” of the show.
He went on to say that TV bosses had failed to “investigate my disability” or “protect me from what I now realise was a dangerous environment”.
Meanwhile, a friend of the presenter told The Times that Wallace could not wear underwear “because of his autistic hypersensitivity to labels and tight clothing”.
Seema Flower, founder of disabilities consultancy BlindAmbition, told BBC News that there was “no excuse” for inappropriate behaviour, stating: “Where does it leave us if we use autism as an excuse to behave in whatever way we like?”
A National Autistic Society spokesperson said: “Every autistic person is different, just like every non-autistic person is different, so it is important not to generalise or make judgements based on the actions, words or behaviour of any one individual.”
Wallace first stepped away from his role on MasterChef nine months ago, after the BBC received a number of complaints about his conduct. He was replaced by Grace Dent on the celebrity edition of the show, and was also dropped as an ambassador for the charity Ambitious about Autism.
His lawyers have said that “it is entirely false that he engages in behaviour of a sexually harassing nature”.
In the same Instagram post addressing his autism diagnosis, Wallace launched a lengthy tirade against the BBC, claiming that he had decided to “speak out” and share the findings of the months-long investigation into his on-set behaviour, which he described as “full and forensic”.
He said that he “cannot sit in silence while my reputation is further damaged to protect others”, and stated that the as of yet unpublished investigation “exonerates me of all the serious allegations which made headlines last year”.
The former greengrocer said that the report found him “guilty of inappropriate language between 2005 and 2018”. He apologised “without reservation”, adding: “I recognise that some of my humour and language, at times, was inappropriate.”
He maintained, however, that the report showed that the “most damaging claims” made against him – “including allegations from public figures which have not been upheld” – are “baseless”.
“I was hired by the BBC and MasterChef as the cheeky greengrocer,” he continued. “A real person with warmth, character, rough edges and all. For over two decades, that authenticity was part of the brand.
“Now, in a sanitised world, that same personality is seen as a problem.”
The former Inside the Factory host added that he “will not go quietly” and “will not be cancelled for convenience”.
In response to Wallace’s statement, the BBC told The Independent: “Banijay UK instructed the law firm Lewis Silkin to run an investigation into allegations against Gregg Wallace. We are not going to comment until the investigation is complete and the findings are published.”
