I warned TV bosses about ‘disgusting’ Gregg Wallace 16 years in the past however they ignored me, claims ex-MasterChef hopeful
Masterchef bosses were allegedly warned at least 16 years ago about Gregg Wallace‘s sexual misconduct – but no action was taken, it has been claimed.
Former contestant Dr Kate Tomas, 42, said she complained about Wallace’s treatment of her on the BBC show in 2008, claiming he ‘sexually harassed’ and ‘bullied’ her, but ‘nothing was done’.
Dr Tomas, a spiritual mentor to the stars, said she was asked to return to MasterChef as one of the best losers that year, but refused because of Wallace’s behaviour.
‘Nothing was said, nothing was done, but he was disgusting and repulsive and anybody who knows me knows my deep, deep f****** hatred for this man,’ she said.
Four-times married Wallace, 60, has stepped back as a judge while show chiefs investigate claims from 13 people including Newsnight host Kirsty Wark, 69.
Dr Tomas revealed on TikTok that Wallace allegedly ‘commented inappropriately’ after she ‘got a flush of red’ across her chest during judging of dishes.
She said: ‘He was like ‘what’s that?’ motioning to my chest, and I look down and I can see I’ve got a flush of red across my chest.
‘I feel so self-conscious and want to cover myself up because he’s staring at my f****** t*** – all of which is being filmed.’
Former contestant Dr Kate Tomas, 42, said she complained about Wallace’s treatment of her on the BBC show in 2008, claiming he ‘sexually harassed’ and ‘bullied’ her, but ‘nothing was done’
Dr Tomas, a spiritual mentor to the stars, said she was asked to return to MasterChef as one of the best losers that year, but refused because of Wallace’s behaviour
Wallace on MasterChef with co-host John Torode. Dr Tomas claims that the presenter was looking at her chest during filming and said: ‘I feel so self-conscious and want to cover myself up because he’s staring at my f****** t*** – all of which is being filmed’
She accused Wallace of being a ‘racist piece of s***’ after he allegedly imitated an Asian accent in front of an Indian cameraman.
Dr Tomas, who was married to an Indian at the time, said Wallace also ‘bullied’ her for wearing sindoor, a red dye on the hair parting signifying her married status.
She added Wallace ‘violently swiped’ potatoes off a counter after she decided not to use them in her recipe.
She said: ‘They went rolling on the floor. [He said] ‘Oh, you don’t need those then do you?’ and swiped them off the table.’
Dr Tomas, who has dated Spider-Man star Andrew Garfield, said she complained about Wallace’s behaviour at the time.
She did not make it clear on TikTok to whom she had complained.
She added she had been ‘traumatised and re-triggered’ when she learned he was being investigated over historic misconduct claims.
MasterChef’s producer Banijay UK drafted in top City law firm Lewis Silkin last night to investigate allegations against Wallace.
Gregg Wallace will step away from presenting MasterChef while complaints made to the BBC from individuals about historical allegations of misconduct are investigated. Former Newsnight host Kirsty Wark is among 13 people who have accused MasterChef presenter Gregg Wallace of making inappropriate sexual comments she heard filming Celebrity MasterChef in 2011 (right)
Gregg looked stressed as Ms Wark struggled with her gravy in 2011
Thirteen people have told the BBC about inappropriate sexual comments they claim were made by Wallace across a range of shows over a 17-year period
One is from Kirsty Wark who competed in Celebrity MasterChef 2011.
She said that on two occasions during morning filming, Wallace told stories and jokes of a ‘sexualised nature’ in front of contestants and the show’s crew.
A former crew member told the BBC that Wallace showed her topless pictures of himself and begged her for massages, while a lesbian ex-worker on Channel 5 show Gregg Wallace’s Big Weekends said he pressed her on the logistics of dating women.
Other ex-colleagues complained Wallace would talk openly about his sex life, with one male worker on Big Weekends alleging boasts about having threesomes with sex workers and alleging he ‘loves spanking’ several times a day.
A junior female staffer on the BBC’s Eat Well for Less? claimed Wallace told her in 2019 that he wasn’t wearing any boxer shorts.
Channel 5 has asked producer Rumpus Media to investigate the claims made by Big Weekends staff.
This weekend, Wallace was accused of groping two women in allegations reported by The Sun.
One contestant alleged he groped her while she was cooking on the show, with the incident said to be caught on camera.
The unnamed woman said: ‘At the start of filming he came up behind me as I stood at my counter, and looked over my shoulder.
‘He put his hands on my hips, moved to the back of me, and pressed into me. I made an ‘Eeew’ sound and stepped forward.
Moments later I scalded myself… I couldn’t help shrieking. It really hurt. He heard me and shouted, “You stupid f****** cow”.’
Another woman alleged Wallace told her in a busy pub that she aroused him, made lewd comments and squeezed her bottom.
The disclosures come as an anonymous whistleblower claimed they wrote to the BBC to protest about Wallace two years ago after receiving ‘half a dozen’ complaints about him from TV staff.
The whistleblower runs the Instagram page ‘S***meninTVhavesaidtome’, which collects stories from workers who have allegedly suffered sexual harassment.
The letter read: ‘I have noticed a pattern of behaviour from one person whose name has been mentioned half a dozen times in connection with lude [sic] comments being made to female production members, female production being made to feel uncomfortable about being asked for their personal numbers, being made to talk to the talent while the talent is topless and general unease in their company. Gregg Wallace is the name attached to these experiences.’
The letter also accused Wallace of making comments about a woman’s ‘a***’ which was followed by ‘a light groping’.
In a video on Friday, Wallace thanked people for ‘showing their support’. His representatives did not respond to a request for comment yesterday but his lawyers have previously said: ‘It is entirely false that he engages in behaviour of a sexually harassing nature’.
Banijay said it would not comment while the investigation is ongoing. Previously, it said complaints made to the BBC about Wallace had not been ‘raised directly with our show producers or parent company Banijay UK’.
It added Wallace ‘is committed to fully cooperating in the review’.
The BBC said: ‘Any behaviour which falls below standards expected by the BBC will not be tolerated.
‘Where an individual is contracted directly by an external production company we share any complaints with that company and support them in addressing them.’
