Gregg Wallace has been under fire for his alleged sexual misconduct in his job as a BBC Masterchef presenter. He took to social media to call out his accusers as a handful of “middle-class women of a certain age.”
BBC News found 13 allegations spanning across a 17-year period of his time of Masterchef. Ex-BBC Newsnight host Kirsty Wark who appeared on Celebrity MasterChef said Wallace made sexualised comments creating an uncomfortable environment for the crew and contestants.
Wallace attempted to discredit his accusers by claiming he has worked with over “4000 contestants” with only 13 people complaining. His comments have attacked the gender, age and class of his accusers. In this video, he did not deny the allegations.
His video has sparked renewed outrage, with many claiming Wallace is attempting to use class issues to cover up his inappropriate behaviour.
Gregg Wallace has stepped down from his Masterchef role after BBC’s HR investigation concluded his behaviour was “unacceptable and inappropriate.”
Outraged onlookers have taken to X with #MiddleClassWomenOfaCertainAge to call out Wallace’s demonisation of older women. One user stated “just as long as … actual middle-class, middle-aged women don’t revert back to being seen as Karens whose complaints are unkind/pearl-clutching/shrill/exclusionary/trivial/uncool”
Another user added: “The #MiddleClassWomanOfaCertainAge tag is the absolute embodiment of brilliant, brave women taking the absolute bullshit of men and turning it into something positive and affirming. It’s amazing how we can be heard if we all shout loudly enough, together.”