Kirstie Allsopp slams Gregg Wallace over sex act admission within an hour of first meeting

Kirstie Allsopp said she felt 'embarrassed' by Gregg Wallace's comments, she claims were made within one hour of meeting him and while his partner was nearby

TV presenter Kirstie Allsopp has slammed MasterChef host Gregg Wallace for his 'unprofessional' behaviour the first time they met.

The Love It Or List It star took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to reveal what Wallace - who has stepped away from MasterChef following complaints about his inappropriate sexual comments and behaviour - did during their first encounter, which left her feeling "embarrassed".

She said "Within 1hr of meeting Gregg Wallace he told me of a sex act that he & his partner at the time enjoyed “every morning”, she'd just left the room, we were filming a pilot. Did he get off on how embarrassed I was? It was totally unprofessional." She ended the post by saying: "I’m a #MiddleClassWomanOfaCertainAge."

This is a direct reference to the video Gregg - who has already denied the claims through his reps - posted to his Instagram stories on Sunday morning. In it, he said: "I’ve been doing MasterChef for 20 years. Amateur, Celebrity and Professional MasterChef. And in that time, I have worked with over 4,000 contestants of all different ages, all different backgrounds, all walks of life.

"And apparently now I am reading in the paper there’s been 13 complaints in that time. 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. In over 20 years of television, can you imagine how many women, female contestants, on MasterChef have made sexual remarks or sexual innuendo, can you imagine?"

Sharing why she didn't say anything at the time, 53-year-old Kirstie explained it was said in the Green Room away from the cameras. But even though it happened when her career was "pretty solid at this point", she added: "Why say nothing? Because you feel, in no particular order, embarrassed, a prude, shocked, waiting for a male colleague to call him out, not wanting to “rock the boat”, thinking it’s better to plough on with the day, assuming you misheard/misunderstood or just don’t get the joke."

The claims against Wallace emerged on Thursday when the BBC said it had received 13 complaints about his behaviour, which date back 17 years. A BBC spokesman said: "We take any issues that are raised with us seriously and we have robust processes in place to deal with them. We are always clear that any behaviour which falls below the standards expected by the BBC will not be tolerated. Where an individual is contracted directly by an external production company we share any complaints or concerns with that company and we will always support them when addressing them."

Since then further claims have been made against the TV host, including that he allegedly groped three women. One of these incidents is said to have taken place on the MasterChef set. He has also been accused of 'bullying', using 'racist' language and behaving in a sexually inappropriate manner.

In a statement, Wallace's lawyers have said "it is entirely false that he engages in behaviour of a sexually harassing nature".

MasterChef production team Banijay UK released a statement saying they will be conducting their own external review into the allegations and have appointed law firm Lewis Silkin to lead the investigation.

A spokesperson said: "This week the BBC received complaints from individuals in relation to historical allegations of misconduct while working with presenter Gregg Wallace on one of our shows. Whilst these complainants have not raised the allegations directly with our show producers or parent company Banijay UK, we feel that it is appropriate to conduct an immediate, external review to fully and impartially investigate."

The statement continued: "While this review is under way, Gregg Wallace will be stepping away from his role on MasterChef and is committed to fully co-operating throughout the process."

it added: "Banijay UK's duty of care to staff is always a priority and our expectations regarding behaviour are made clear to both cast and crew on all productions, with multiple ways of raising concerns, including anonymously, clearly promoted on set. Whilst these are historical allegations, incidences brought to our attention where these expectations are not met, are thoroughly investigated and addressed appropriately. If anyone would like to talk to us or raise any issues or concerns, then they can contact speakupbanijayuk.com in confidence."

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