BBC Dropped Gregg Wallace Due To Lack Of 'Confidence' He Could Change Behaviour

Higher-ups at the BBC were not “confident” that the former MasterChef host Gregg Wallace could “change what seems to be learned behaviour”, resulting in his exit from the broadcaster, it has been reported.

Earlier this week, it was revealed that Gregg had been dropped as the host of MasterChef after 20 years at the helm, following an external investigation into complaints made to the BBC about his past conduct.

On Thursday evening, The Telegraph published details of a letter addressed to the TV personality from BBC Television’s head of compliance, in which it was deemed that he “struggled to distinguish the boundaries between appropriate and inappropriate behaviour in the workplace”, and lacked “awareness” of why his “behaviour impacts others”.

It was also claimed that he had been given relevant training on these matters as recently as 2019.

Excerpts of the letter published in The Telegraph state: “I do not have confidence that your behaviour can change to ensure there is a sufficiently safe and respectful environment for others working with you in the types of programmes the BBC has engaged you to present.”

“Given my conclusion, I do not believe that the BBC should make plans to work with you in the future on any of its productions, whether directly or indirectly,” the letter also said.

In a statement shared on Instagram earlier this week, Gregg hit out at the BBC, saying: “To be clear, [the external investigation] exonerates me of all the serious allegations which made headlines last year and finds me primarily guilty of inappropriate language between 2005 and 2018.

“I recognise that some of my humour and language, at times, was inappropriate. For that, I apologise without reservation. But I was never the caricature now being sold for clicks. I was hired by the BBC and MasterChef as the cheeky greengrocer. 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.”

He also disclosed that he had recently been diagnosed with autism, something he alleged was “suspected and discussed by colleagues across countless seasons of MasterChef”.

“Yet nothing was done to investigate my disability or protect me from what I now realise was a dangerous environment for over twenty years,” he added. “That failure is now being quietly buried.”

The BBC’s letter made note of Gregg’s recent diagnosis, saying: “I have noted that you do not consider certain environments to now be ‘safe’ for you.

“In addition to the duty of care towards you, the BBC equally to take into account the safety and duty of care owed towards contributors, members of the public and colleagues on production teams that you may engage with and the appropriate use of licence fee payers’ money in establishing a safe working environment for all.”

Gregg announced he would be taking a leave of absence from MasterChef and its various spin-offs towards the end of last year while the investigation got underway.

A series of MasterChef was reportedly filmed last year with Gregg in his usual role right up until the finale (per The Guardian). The upcoming series of Celebrity MasterChef was recorded after Gregg’s absence, with Grace Dent co-hosting with John Torode.