Gregg Wallace's new business venture as he's swiftly replaced on MasterChef by Grace Dent

Gregg Wallace has been replaced on Celebrity MasterChef by former contestant, Grace Dent, after the dad-of-three was accused of inappropriate behaviour on the BBC show

Gregg Wallace revealed a new business venture shortly before being replaced on MasterChef by Grace Dent.

The former greengrocer, 60, has stepped down from the BBC show following the ongoing controversy around allegations of alleged inappropriate behaviour on MasterChef, which he denies.

Before being replaced by Ms Dent on the celebrity version of the show, Gregg revealed he was working towards launching a new range of ready meals.

In November, he wrote on his blog: "It was another busy week in London filming the new series of MasterChef. On your televisions at the moment, you’ve got the wonderful Professional MasterChef. And what incredible talent on display this year.

"It really is such an honour to watch the next generation of talented chefs coming through. 'I have been working for quite a while now on frozen ready meals from the GreggWallace.health range of recipes. These will be available to members only at the start.

"Let’s see how we get on. I have managed to have some time at home and did some cooking. It’s a habit I want to get back in to – cooking for the family once a week is something that I really enjoy."

Gregg has a lot more time on his hands now that his future on MasterChef hangs in the balance, with a source recently telling The Sun, the presenter from Peckham admitted he was "f****d" after the allegations. The dad-of-three has been accused of making "inappropriate sexual jokes" amongst other behavioural complaints. However, the presenter's lawyer says: "It is entirely false that he engages in behaviour of a sexually harassing nature".

After the allegations, Gregg apologised for his remarks suggesting complaints about his conduct came from "a handful of middle-class women of a certain age". Taking to Instagram, he said: "I want to apologise for any offence that I caused with my post yesterday and any upset I may have caused to a lot of people."

Now, Grace, 51, is replacing Gregg on Celebrity MasterChef and she said she couldn't be happier to get the gig. In a statement, she said hosting the show was "more than a dream to me" and said she felt "very lucky" to be taking the reins.

Meanwhile, Gregg's co-star, John Torode, who has not publicly defended his former colleague, said: "I have loved working with Grace on MasterChef over the years. She has been an excellent guest, an inspiring critic and also set some incredible challenges. 'Expertise is what MasterChef is all about, from the contestants to our wonderful production team, to us as judges.

"The love of food, the love of MasterChef, and that unquestionable expertise, makes Grace the perfect person to step in alongside me as judge for the forthcoming Celebrity MasterChef series."

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