John Torode had a scathing response when summing up his and former MasterChef co-host Gregg Wallace back in 2017.
Wallace has recently stepped away from hosting the cooking show, following an investigation by the BBC following complaints 'in relation to historical allegations of misconduct' with those that have worked with presenter Gregg Wallace on 'one of our shows', say MasterChef's producer Banijay.
“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.
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“While this review is underway, Gregg Wallace will be stepping away from his role on MasterChef and is committed to fully cooperating throughout the process."
They added that incidences have been 'brought to our attention' which are being 'thoroughly investigated', while a BBC spokesperson told PA: "We are always clear that any behaviour which falls below the standards expected by the BBC will not be tolerated."
The announcement was swiftly followed by a BBC News report that detailed allegations from 13 people claiming Wallace had made sexual comments, including a broadcaster.
The accusations spanned 17 years and the alleged incidents were said to have occurred across a number of shows.
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Newsnight host Kirsty Wark was among those making allegations against Wallace, saying he told stories and jokes of a 'sexualised nature' that were 'really, really in the wrong place'.
She added: "I think people were uncomfortable. We were essentially a captive audience. People looked embarrassed and just got on with their work."
Following these allegations, people were curious to see what MasterChef co-host John Torode had to say.
Torode has presented the popular BBC programme with Wallace since 2005, and they are known as one of British TV's most famous duos.
Though they may film in all corners of the world, it turns out that they aren't the best friends when the cameras stop rolling, according to an interview in the Sunday Mirror back in 2017.
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Speaking to the publication seven years ago, the Australian chef revealed: "We’ve never been friends."
Torode went on, saying that his colleague was 'so OCD', fully explaining: "It’s funny, we’ve never been friends. We’ve not been to each other’s houses…
"He’s so OCD, he wouldn’t know what to do. He’d build it up in his mind for three days, and probably make himself quite sick, then he’d have an argument with his wife and not turn up.
"If I went to his house, he would feel like he wasn’t in control."
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Just last month, Wallace responded to reports about an investigation by the BBC which found he could continue to work for the company after an alleged incident in 2018 on Impossible Celebrities.
He stated at the time: "The story that's hitting the newspapers was investigated promptly when it happened six years ago by the BBC.
"The outcome of that was that I hadn't said anything sexual. I'll need to repeat this again. I didn't say anything sexual."
Wallace has presented food-based TV shows for over 20 years, first appearing as a host on Saturday Kitchen in 2002.
Sharing a brief statement on Instagram in response to the allegations, Wallace said in a video: I would like to thank all the people getting in touch, reaching out and showing their support.
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"That's good of you. Thank you very much."
LADbible has reached out to John Torode's representatives for comment. LADbible Group has previously contacted Gregg Wallace's representatives regarding the allegations.
Topics: BBC, TV, TV and Film, Gregg Wallace
Joshua Nair