Gregg Wallace has reportedly been banned from working at the BBC, as executives lack “confidence” that he would be able to change “what seems to be learned behaviour”.
The corporation is said to have ruled that the television presenter is not safe to have in the workplace, following an investigation into his behaviour on the cooking competition show MasterChef.
In the letter of dismissal, sent by head of compliance for BBC Television Claire Powell, the 60-year-old was warned he will not get a job as a BBC presenter again, The Telegraph reported.
Highlighting that Wallace was a presenter on “a flagship BBC show”, the letter reportedly also addressed the impact his alleged remarks had on the broadcaster’s reputation.
The Telegraph reported that the investigation is set to clear Wallace of the most severe accusations of groping, but find him guilty of making inappropriate comments in the workplace.
The Independent has contacted Wallace’s representatives for comment.
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.
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, included allegations that he groped a MasterChef colleague.
The fresh allegations come just days before the 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 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 add 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 and asked: “Where does it leave us if we use autism as an excuse to behave in whatever way we like?”
Emily Banks, founder of neurodiversity training body Enna, told the broadcaster that autism “doesn’t absolve anyone of responsibility, and it certainly doesn’t mean you can’t tell the difference between right and wrong”, while Dan Harris from the charity Neurodiversity in Business said that autism “is not a free pass for bad behaviour”.
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 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, 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 then-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.”
However, he maintained that the report showed the “most damaging claims” against him, “including allegations from public figures which have not been upheld”, to be “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.”
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