MasterChef fans start petition for BBC to sign fan-favourite TV cook as John Torode's replacement after shock sacking
fans' demands MasterChef fans start petition for BBC to sign fan-favourite TV cook as John Torode's replacement after shock sacking
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MASTERCHEF fans have launched a petition for the BBC to sign a fan favourite TV cook as John Torode's replacement.
The Aussie chef, 59, was axed from MasterChef after allegedly using a racist remark.
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MasterChef fans have declared who they'd like to replace John Torode
Credit: BBC
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John and Gregg Wallace began co-hosting MasterChef in 2005
Credit: BBC
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Fans have suggested Si King as a possible replacement
Credit: Rex
It comes as a report upheld 45 of 83 allegations of bad behaviour against his co-host Gregg Wallace, who was also axed last week.
The dossier also upheld a complaint that an unnamed person used a racial phrase once several years ago.
Writing online, viewers have put their support behind a familiar face to replace John: Si King of the Hairy Bikers.
One wrote on Reddit: "If Masterchef isnt cancelled Si King has to be the new presenter.
Not sure who could join him and with Dave passing that could be an issue.
"Maybe Marcus Waring or a rotating line up thinking Nigella, Marcus, Jay Rayner, not big Zuu etv."
"Si encapsulates everything I like in a cooking show, he's warm, friendly and seems to love food."
Another added: "Si King & keep Grace Dent. Perfect mix."
While a third shared: "Si king and Ade edmondson would be great."
A fourth remarked: "Si King is a great shout."
Masterchef meltdown as BBC asked John Torode to RESIGN over 'racist remark' before Gregg Wallace sacking
A BBC spokesperson confirmed in a statement that Torode is axed from the show.
A statement read: 'John Torode has identified himself as having an upheld allegation of using racist language against him.
"This allegation – which involves an extremely offensive racist term being used in the workplace- was investigated and substantiated by the independent investigation led by the law firm, Lewis Silkin.
"John Torode denies the allegation. He has stated he has no recollection of the alleged incident and does not believe that it happened.
"He also says that any racial language is wholly unacceptable in any environment.
'The BBC takes this upheld finding extremely seriously. We will not tolerate racist language of any kind and, as we have already said, we told Banijay UK, the makers of MasterChef, that action must be taken.
"John Torode's contract on MasterChef will not be renewed.'
MasterChef - Who could be joining the BBC series?
With John Torode and Gregg Wallace now both gone from MasterChef, several names have been suggested as possible replacements.
These include: Matt Tebbutt
Grace Dent
Andi Oliver
Si King
Banijay wrote a statement which added: "In response to John Torode's statement, it is important to stress that Banijay UK takes this matter incredibly seriously.
"The legal team at Lewis Silkin that investigated the allegations relating to Gregg Wallace also substantiated an accusation of highly offensive racist language against John Torode which occurred in 2018.
"This matter has been formally discussed with John Torode by Banijay UK, and whilst we note that John says he does not recall the incident, Lewis Silkin have upheld the very serious complaint.
"Banijay UK and the BBC are agreed that we will not renew his contract on MasterChef."
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Daily Record
23 minutes ago
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MasterChef's John Torode opens up about marriage as Lisa Faulker admits 'we're doing our own thing'
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In the summer of 2016, the cover of Hello! magazine bore a 'MasterChef wedding exclusive'. On the left was Gregg Wallace, grinning in a blue suit with a white rose in his buttonhole, holding the hand of his new bride, Anne-Marie. Next to her, Lisa Faulkner, the actress and former Celebrity MasterChef winner who had gone on to marry his co-star, John Torode. Next to Faulkner, with a matching flower in his buttonhole, was Wallace's best man, Torode. Wallace and Torode had been MasterChef's odd couple ever since they became hosts in 2005. They had first met in the 1990s on the London restaurant scene, when Torode was working at Quaglino's and Wallace was his veg supplier. By then, both were circling 50: Wallace was on his fourth marriage and Torode on his second. Slightly improbably, given where they had started, they had become two of the biggest names on British television. In the photograph, they look like a pair of old boys quietly revelling in having got very, very lucky in life. 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We've had a couple of stand-offs over the years, about contestants, and I've just had to walk away from him.' Best men or remote colleagues – it's not clear which is the real story. Torode was sacked this week by Banijay, the production company that makes MasterChef, amid allegations he had made a racist remark. Until then, it had seemed that Wallace, who has had more than half of the 83 allegations levied against him upheld, was being cast as the wrong 'un; Torode was the innocent bystander. But while there is no suggestion that Torode has been accused of the same kind of allegations as Wallace, this latest chaotic chapter in the great unravelling of the BBC's flagship show, has muddied the waters for the Australian presenter. Torode, 59, is now facing claims he used the n-word at an after-show drinks in 2018, with the alleged incident reportedly coming to light during Banijay's own investigation into Wallace. The Sun also reported Torode had repeated lyrics from rapper Kanye West 's song Gold Digger, which contains a racial slur. The BBC said Torode had used 'an extremely offensive racist term', adding: 'We will not tolerate racist language of any kind. The Telegraph understands that Torode was the subject of multiple allegations, although only one was substantiated. On Monday, the celebrity chef said he had 'absolutely no recollection' of that alleged incident. 'I do not believe that it happened. However, I want to be clear that I've always had the view that any racial language is wholly unacceptable in any environment. I am shocked and saddened by the allegation, as I would never wish to cause anyone any offence.' The question remains, then, was Torode just another powerful man in the public eye whose bad behaviour went unchecked? Or is he, as some fear, collateral damage of a PR disaster? 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'It seems to me that this is the BBC getting tough on a soft target,' the source said, adding the presenter may have been a victim of over-sensitivity within the corporation in the wake of other recent scandals, like the broadcasting of anti-Semitic chants at Glastonbury. 'Who would have thought that John Torode would be a casualty of Israel-Palestine, which is basically what's happened.' In December, The Telegraph revealed BBC bosses were alerted to complaints about Wallace on at least four different shows over the course of a decade. Monday's report revealed that alongside the allegations made against Wallace over 19 years, there were also 10 made against other people, two of which were substantiated. On Tuesday afternoon, Torode released a statement confirming that one of the substantiated claims related to him. Wallace said this week he was 'deeply sorry for any distress' he caused. He has previously defended himself, saying he has recently been diagnosed with autism, but TV bosses had failed to 'investigate my disability', or 'protect me from what I now realise was a dangerous environment'. Some say Torode is being tarred with the same brush as his co-star. 'Up until this moment, I've never heard anything bad about John,' said one industry insider. While inappropriate behaviour by Wallace was claimed to be common knowledge, there has never, the source said, been chatter about Torode. 'I think Gregg was one of those poorly-kept secrets, whereas John hasn't been [associated with inappropriate behaviour].' Torode must at the very least have been witness to some of what one source described as the 'toxic' culture at MasterChef. The set might have had a 'glamorous veneer', the source said, but 'the reality was very different'. 'Everyone was too frightened to call out bad behaviour, even though everyone knew it was going on.' Aasmah Mir, the BBC presenter and former Celebrity MasterChef contestant, said that when Wallace made an inappropriate remark to her during filming – telling her to tell a BBC colleague she was a 'sexy b---h' – Torode failed to step in. 'What I know is Gregg Wallace used an incredibly inappropriate term, and John Torode didn't do anything,' she told ITV's Good Morning Britain. 'There was no emotion.' 'It was an uncomfortable experience. I remember feeling destabilised, my cheeks were burning. I remember thinking I don't know what happened there. No one said anything. And both Gregg Wallace and John Torode just looked completely blank, like nothing had happened.' One source close to the show told The Telegraph, Torode 'could be quite sharp... He was very good at managing up, knowing how to behave in the company of important people.' Another described him as 'a typical Aussie – a bit of a sledger when it came to jokes, and he could be very blunt in the way he addressed people'. 'That's the environment he grew up in,' the source said. 'The idea that Gregg was the only one whose comments could offend people is not right.' A fellow Australian who encountered Torode at an event organised by the Australian Embassy, put it even more bluntly, saying he was 'a total flog' – Australian slang for a pretentious, conceited person. Meanwhile, a source who worked with both Wallace and Torode, said that despite the way the pair have been portrayed, Torode was less popular than Wallace. 'Gregg, for all his faults, was a warm character and many people on MasterChef felt generously towards him even if they could see that some of his comments were inappropriate. There was less love and generosity felt towards John, definitely.' The Telegraph understands the pair have not spoken since Wallace was forced to step down in November. 'They had a really good on-screen partnership, but it stopped there,' says one source. 'They were never mates,' the source adds, casting new light on the Hello! photoshoot, which begins to look like more of a publicity stunt. Nevertheless, a friend of Wallace insisted that he took no pleasure in Torode's dismissal. 'He has said to me he was really upset that John has gone. He didn't want to see this happen to anybody else. There is no solace for him in John going.' Some industry insiders feel the show will ride this latest wave. 'It's a colossus, and you have to remember Britain is just one territory where it's shown. It's inconceivable that it would be scrapped. It's a very big deal, a key part of the schedule. I'd say it's pretty indestructible.' Others say the loss of Torode presents a crucial opportunity to breathe fresh air into a tired format, including, perhaps, with female presenters. 'The BBC were too slow to realise the show badly needed a reboot,' says one source. 'They needed to change it up five years ago. If they had, they wouldn't be in this position. 'There has long been a question about whether Gregg and John were the right people to lead it anyway. Now, they're in a position where they're going to have to bring it back from the brink and completely rebrand it. They need two new people to draw a line under the Gregg and John situation. And they have to get that choice right, with hosts who have real food knowledge, or it'll be over for the show.' What happens next for Torode remains to be seen. ITV is standing by him and will continue to broadcast the Saturday morning show, John and Lisa's Weekend Kitchen. In a statement on Instagram this week, Torode said he hadn't heard from the BBC or Banijay. 'I am seeing and reading that I have been sacked from MasterChef, and I repeat that I have no recollection of what I'm accused of.'
