Gregg Wallace has been a household name for years presenting MasterChef and other must watches such as 'Inside the Factory', but poor old Gregg's 'handsy' nature has done it for him.....
The BBC recently fired Wallace from MasterChef after verifying 45 of the claims against him. They included unwanted touching, showing up in a state of undress, bullying, and sexual or inappropriate comments. The complaints, which dated back several years, painted a stark picture of a workplace culture that some of his colleagues had found uncomfortable — and even dangerous.
Wallace has maintained his innocence, stating that his behavior was a consequence of the mixing of his "working-class ways" and his undiagnosed autism. On Instagram, he stated that he had been hired for his "cheeky greengrocer" personality, and that formerly it had been part of the program's brand. For him, media's world has now become "sanitised" and does not give as much scope to the personality that had made him a success.
Some of Wallace's "authenticity" is difficult to reconcile with professional boundaries. Marina Hyde at The Guardian quoted the friends of Wallace as reporting that The Times was told his autism renders him "can't wear underwear" because he is hypersensitive to tight and label-fitted garments — a reason cited for episodes of semi-nudity. Wallace's definition of authenticity, The Sunday Times reports, actually went so far as to enter his dressing room in a single sock on his penis and shouting "Hooray!
Taking it too far...?
It certainly seems so, using a working class background as an excuse for getting handsy or autism as an excuse for putting a sock over your cock and dancing about in front of female Masterchef contestants, that won't wash, unlike's Gregg's socks, or sock, but I wouldn't fancy wearing that after!
Failure to Act...
There's a long history in broadcasting of employers showing reluctance to move against popular figures until anger in the public is such that action becomes inevitable.
Wallace has claimed that producers of Masterchef suspected his neurodiversity several years before it was formally diagnosed, but failed to ask or implement safeguards. He describes the MasterChef studio as a "hazardous environment" for over two decades, further suggesting the television culture itself is partly to blame.
But hang on, we're just back to the blame game again.
I mean come on Wallace, just own it and move on!