Gregg Wallace is carving out a new niche for himself following his departure from the BBC, and it turns out it involves a lot of TikToks.
The 60-year-old broadcaster, who presented MasterChef for nearly 20 years between 2005 and 2024, left the show in November last year after a series of allegations emerged against him.
A BBC News investigation discovered allegations of inappropriate sexual comments by 13 people who had worked with Wallace across a range of shows, over 17 years.
In a recent interview with the Daily Mail, he told the paper that the allegations are “not all true”, and said he had felt “under attack” since his exit, and had contemplated suicide.
But the presenter appears to be bouncing back — and using social media to help his cause.
Wallace has posted a series of videos on his social channels, including TikTok, X and Instagram, promoting his new venture Gregg Wallace Health.
These videos include recipes, such as a “healthy burger” made with a tortilla wrap, and cooking tutorials, in which Wallace teaches viewers cooking skills, like how to dice an onion.
@greggawallace Healthy Cheeseburger From GteggWallaceHealth
♬ original sound - Gregg Wallace
According to his website, Gregg Wallace Health is “not a diet” but will help individuals to “lose weight and keep it off.”
The Gregg Wallace Health programme offers paid subscriptions, with customers able to pay £11.99 per month, £49.99 for six months or £89.99 for a year to get full access to the GreggWallace Health tools. These tools include recipes, health specialist advice and a “vibrant community.”
In one video promoting the site, Wallace tells his followers: “I wanted to tell you something that I’m pleased about and it’s free, it’s got loads of good recipes you can look at, it’s got blogs and even a little quiz.”
Wallace has a large following, with 165,000 TikTok followers, 217,000 Instagram followers and 203,000 followers on X. His TikTok videos have over 980,000 likes, and one recent video tutorial teaching followers how to make a frittata has 203,000 views. Wallace’s “healthy burger” recipe also has 350,000 views.
@greggawallace Dice n Onion
♬ original sound - Gregg Wallace
However, not all of his new content is performing well. The most recent video posted to X, in which Wallace flexes his arm muscles and films the vegetables he’s growing in his garden, has zero likes hours after posting, despite his substantial following.
There is some support in the comment sections of his videos, with one Instagram follower commenting, “The comeback is bigger than the setback.” Another adds: “I can’t wait for when they give Gregg Wallace his ‘own’ cook program, with ‘proper’ banter and ‘real’ guest personalities. It’ll happen and it would be superb!”
But Wallace’s social media presence is still marked by his BBC exit. His pinned post on Instagram references the allegations, saying: “I’ve said everything I needed to say in the interview with the Mail and meant every word I said.
“It was hard to do but speaking honestly for myself, my family and especially my mum, felt right.
“Right now, I don’t want to add anything more. I’ve opened my heart and that has to be enough.
“There will be a lot of noise, I get that; but I won’t be joining in. I need space to heal and to be with the people who know who I really am.”
