An announcement will reportedly be made in the coming week
Restaurant critic and former I’m A Celeb contestant Grace Dent is reportedly set to replace Gregg Wallace on MasterChef.
According to reports, an announcement about Wallace’s replacement is “imminent.”
Last month, Wallace stepped away from his presenting and judging duties on MasterChef and its companion shows, Celebrity MasterChef and MasterChef: The Professionals, following allegations of sexual and inappropriate comments to staff and contestants.
Now, reports have emerged suggesting that Dent, who regularly appears as a guest judge on MasterChef, is being lined up to replace him.
The Sun reports that an official announcement will be made by the BBC in the coming week.
A source told the publication: “Grace is the perfect choice to replace Gregg on MasterChef.
“She’s knowledgeable about food and opinionated, plus it’s great to have a woman as a judge on the show. It will shake things up and give the series the boost it needs after such an upsetting and uncertain time.”
Dent is one of the most well-known restaurant and food critics in the country, and is famous for her straight-talking comments.
Last year, she was a contestant on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here, but quit the show after just one week in the jungle.
It is expected that MasterChef ever-present John Torode would continue in his role as host and judge on the show.
Last month, MasterChef’s production company Banijay UK announced that Wallace would be stepping away from MasterChef after almost 20 years whilst an investigation is carried out into allegations of historic misconduct.
This was followed by a report from BBC News which detailed claims from 13 people about Wallace’s conduct from 2005 to 2022.
As more people came forward with allegations, Wallace took to social media on to single out “a handful of middle-class women of a certain age”, before later apologising for his comments.
A number of celebrities have come forward with allegations around Wallace’s conduct.
In a statement confirming he would be stepping away from MasterChef, Banijay UK said: “This week the BBC received complaints from individuals in relation to historical allegations of misconduct while working with presenter Gregg Wallace on one of our shows.
“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.”
The statement added: “While this review is under way, Gregg Wallace will be stepping away from his role on MasterChef and is committed to fully co-operating throughout the process.”
Wallace and his lawyers strongly deny any wrong doing.
