Gregg Wallace breaks silence on racism claim against MasterChef co-host John Torode
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GREGG Wallace has defended his MasterChef co-star John Torode against racism allegations in an exclusive interview with The Sun.
A BBC report which upheld 45 of 83 allegations of bad behaviour against Wallace also upheld a claim that a second person used a racial phrase once several years ago.
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Gregg Wallace and co-host John Torode, 59
Credit: BBC
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He defended his former colleague Torode against racism allegations
Credit: Alamy
Torode later confirmed to The Sun that this allegation referred to him, but denied that it had ever happened.
He followed Wallace in being sacked by the BBC after allegedly using a racial slur when repeating lyrics from rapper Kanye West's hit Gold Digger at an after-work gathering.
Read Gregg Wallace's exclusive interview here
But in an extensive interview with The Sun - in which Wallace also tearfully addresses the slew of complaints of bad behaviour made against him - the former greengrocer leaps to the defence of his co-star.
Gregg exclusively told The Sun: "I'll tell you one thing right now: John Torode is not a racist.
"I've known John for 30 years and he is not a racist.
'And as evidence of that, I'll show you the incredible diversity of the people that he has championed, MasterChef winners, over the years.
"There is no way that man is a racist. No way. And my sympathies go out to John because I don't want anybody to go through what I've been through.'
Wallace was sacked by the Beeb after an investigation upheld 45 out of the 83 allegations made against him.
The bombshell inquiry, carried out by law firm Lewis Silkin for production company Banijay, unveiled a litany of complaints against him.
John Torode sacked by BBC after being accused of using N-word while singing along to Kanye West song Gold Digger
Most of them involved inappropriate sexual language and humour and a further 10 were made about other people - two of which were substantiated.
Wallace, who was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder during the seven-month probe, went on to add that he is "relieved the Banijay report fully recognises that my behaviour changed profoundly in 2018".
Torode began presenting the BBC cooking contest alongside Wallace in 2005.
Gregg and John celebrated the show's 20th anniversary in 2024 with a special dinner at Fishmongers' Hall in London.
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A report found out of the 83 allegations against Wallace, 45 were substantiated
Credit: BBC
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Allegations against the MasterChef star date back to 2017
Credit: Darren Fletcher - The Sun
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