"MasterChef" presenter Gregg Wallace has apologised after referring to the people who have complained about his alleged inappropriate behaviour as a "handful of middle-class women of a certain age".
In a video shared on his Instagram account, the 60-year-old apologised for "any offence that I caused" with the comments he made yesterday, adding that he had not been "in a good headspace" at the time. "It's obvious to me I need to take some time out now, while this investigation is under way. I hope you understand and I do hope you will accept this apology," he said.
Wallace had met with blowback overnight after a video posted yesterday in which he appeared to dismiss the 13 people who have come forward with complaints about his behaviour on set. In the clip, he said: "Apparently now in the newspaper I can see the complaints coming from a handful of middle-class women of a certain age just from 'Celebrity MasterChef'. This isn't right."
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Emma Kennedy, who won "Celebrity MasterChef" in 2012 and who says she made a complaint about Wallace at the time, said in response to the video: "It doesn't matter what the age of any woman is." Ulrika Jonsson, another former "Celebrity MasterChef" contestant, told The Telegraph that Wallace's comments displayed "the arrogance of a man who has zero introspection or self-awareness".
Even Downing Street weighed in on the row, with a No. 10 spokesperson saying his remarks were "inappropriate and misogynistic". The spokesperson also "confirmed Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy held talks with BBC bosses in the wake of the row about his behaviour", the BBC said.
Wallace has stepped back from his role on "MasterChef" while the allegations – including three of inappropriate touching – are investigated by the BBC.
"MasterChef" is currently set to continue to air as scheduled, although Labour MP Rupa Huq, a member of the Culture, Media and Sport Committee, told Radio 4's "Today" programme there was "an argument for pausing while this investigation takes its course".
