Rumours that John Torode’s future at MasterChef was in doubt were already rumbling when production bosses hosted a rooftop dinner for screen stars and industry insiders in central London last Tuesday.
Top of the menu for discussion was Gregg Wallace, who hours earlier had attacked BBC News for “chasing slanderous clickbait” as it published a report upholding allegations about his behaviour from 45 individuals.
However, on the sidelines bosses were being pressed about the future of his longstanding co-presenter. The suggestion was that Torode could also be implicated in the independent investigation over allegations of racism.
One senior producer at the event sought to play down the idea that there was no future for Torode on the show amid claims that an “angry and isolated” Wallace could be seen as attempting to sabotage his former co-presenter.
Yet on Tuesday it was confirmed Torode’s contract would not be renewed with MasterChef after two decades, just 24 hours after Wallace’s contract was ended.
The previous day Torode had outed himself as the individual found to have used “extremely offensive racist language in the workplace” during an incident in 2018, after the publication of the report by the law firm Lewis Silkin.
Of eight allegations made against the 59-year-old between 2012 and 2019, investigators classed two as not substantiated and six as having insufficient evidence.
On Wednesday night it emerged that Torode is talking to employment lawyers about taking legal action against the BBC over his sacking. A source told The Mirror: “John is preparing to launch the lawsuit against the BBC. He wants to pursue them for unfair dismissal. He’s telling people there is no proof of his supposed comment. It was not in a work capacity, it was just hearsay. John is determined to clear his name.”
ITV is understood to be standing by Torode. John and Lisa’s Weekend Kitchen, which Torode presents with his wife, Lisa Faulkner, will continue as normal. The next episode goes out on Saturday.
Torode will continue to present John and Lisa’s Weekend Kitchen on ITV
DAVE J HOGAN/GETTY IMAGES
Executives at the broadcaster held discussions about the presenter’s future on Tuesday night and an ITV source told The Daily Telegraph: “There aren’t any planned changes to our schedules.” ITV has never received any complaints about Torode’s conduct on one of its shows, it is understood.
Bosses at Banijay, the television production company, had recognised that Torode could no longer continue on MasterChef after its findings. However, their primary focus was on Wallace, who was the original reason the investigation had been launched, and had 45 complaints against him upheld.
They were said to have been further bogged down by Torode after he was understood to have involved lawyers in an apparent attempt to avoid being dragged into the scandal surrounding his co-presenter.
“In the end it was easier for us to say that’s that,” one BBC source said. “We didn’t have the direct relationship with him that Banijay did.”
Another added: “We saw the allegations, we took them very seriously and we were clear it needed to be dealt with. Do you want to drag the show through months of ‘he said, she said’ or do you just want to move on?”
“The BBC is at an inflection point. You need to bring people with you on that transition and show them where the new line has been drawn.”
The writing was on the wall for Torode when Tim Davie, the BBC director-general, distanced himself from the star at the unveiling of the BBC’s annual report.
Later that day the BBC announced Torode’s contract would not be renewed. “Frankly it was a serious racist term which does not get to be acceptable in any way, shape or form,” Davie later told BBC News.
Writing on Instagram on Tuesday, Torode said that the person he had been speaking with did not believe that his language was intended in a malicious way and that he apologised immediately afterwards.
Torode had claimed that he only learnt that his contract was not being renewed after “seeing and reading” public statements, having previously said: “I have absolutely no recollection of any of this and I do not believe that it happened.
“I’d hoped that I’d have some say in my exit from a show I’ve worked on since its relaunch in 2005, but events in the last few days seem to have prevented that,” he added.
This assessment was widely disputed by sources close to the situation. They said that Torode had been made well aware that his future on the show was drawing to a close as a result of the report’s finding. “We’ve been talking to him about this for weeks. He was certainly not blindsided,” said one.
The furore has unsettled staff at the production company, with Patrick Holland, the Banijay UK chief executive, writing to offer support to anyone affected by recent events.
Reports that Torode had been told to claim that he suffered from mental health problems were wide of the mark, Holland said.
Several Banijay staffers said that it had been a difficult period for those who work on the show. One said: “The right decision has been made and they just need to draw a line under it. It’s a very difficult time for everyone who works on the show — the vast majority of whom had absolutely nothing to do with what has gone on.”
Davie said that he believed MasterChef had a future with the broadcaster beyond 2028, when its deal runs out. “A great programme that’s loved by audiences is much bigger than individuals,” he said. “It absolutely can survive and prosper, but we’ve got to make sure we’re in the right place in terms of the culture of the show.”
The commitment will come as a relief to Banijay bosses. MasterChef was worth almost £90 million to the producer last year — 6 per cent of its total revenues.
Hopes are high internally that Grace Dent will stay on as a permanent host after she was parachuted in as a replacement for Wallace on the latest series of Celebrity MasterChef, which has finished filming.
Production is expected to start on the main series later in the autumn.
Andi Oliver
TYLER BARTLAM/BBC
Matt Tebbutt
Best known as the affable host of the BBC’s Saturday Kitchen, the growing profile of Tebbutt, 51, makes him a strong contender for an expanded role.
Andi Oliver
The 62-year-old Great British Menu presenter has been described as a potential “landmark appointment” by Dave James,an odds analyst at Whataretheodds.co.uk.
Tom Kerridge
The 51-year-old owner of two Michelin-starred pubs has previously appeared as a guest on MasterChef: The Professionals, along with an array of BBC food programmes including Great British Menu.
Poppy O’Toole
CHRIS TERRY/JAMIE OLIVER ENTERPRISES LTD
Poppy O’Toole
The Michelin-trained 31-year-old is known as Poppy Cooks to her 1.3 million Instagram fans, where she has appeal to younger audiences. She may be a long shot but MasterChef’s move to Birmingham could count in the Midlander’s favour.
Nadiya Hussain
An outside bet after the former Great British Bake Off winner’s comments on Tuesday, in which Hussain, 40, accused BBC bosses of only “keeping you until you’re of no use”.