MasterChef is set to return to television screens tonight after a last-minute scramble to re-edit the programme and limit the appearances of its presenters Gregg Wallace and John Torode.
The BBC has taken the decision to air the show despite criticism from broadcast union Bectu which said inappropriate behaviour should not be ‘rewarded with prime-time coverage’.
BBC sources told The i that they accept some viewers will not want to watch the series.
Wallace and Torode were both sacked from the show in quick succession last month.
Wallace was sacked after more than 45 complaints against him were upheld following a BBC investigation.
Australian-born chef John, 59, also lost his job after two decades over allegations that he used the N-word, which he claims to have ‘absolutely no recollection’ of.
The new series features amateur chefs and was filmed last year. The BBC has decided to air the show on BBC One and iPlayer after a consultation with its contestants.
One contestant, Sarah Shafi, will not appear on the programme after she complained about the behaviour of Gregg Wallace.
She claimed she was ‘eyed up and ogled’ by Gregg Wallace on the show, while accusing the TV host of making an ‘off’ comment about his reputation with women.
Ms Shafi, who was set to appear on the show’s yet to be aired season, said the greengrocer, 60, made her feel like a ‘rabbit in the headlights’, when he made a ‘throwaway comment’ about his reputation with women.
Unable to recall the exchange verbatim, she told Newsnight: ‘I just stood there, I didn’t know how to respond to that. And that I just thought, where’s that come from? Why was he saying that to me?
‘And then later he came, it was a bit closer and made a comment that I was really amazing and I thought, it’s weird, but I’ll take it. But I thought I just don’t like it. I felt it was off.’
Saying she went on the show ‘faithful to food’, Ms Shafi also revealed she was left ‘flabbergasted’ after being edited out of the hit cooking competition by the BBC following a heated conversation where she felt pressured to agree to the cut.
Banijay UK, the production company behind MasterChef, told the BBC they had no records of Ms Shafi raising concerns about Mr Wallace’s behaviour at the time. They also said they found no evidence of her claims in unedited footage.
When this was brought up, the contestant said it ‘probably happened off camera’, before saying she spoke to family when she arrived back at her hotel, and then MasterChef on the phone the following day.
The comments by Ms Shafi gave the BBC another headache before the show’s return today.
Bosses pondered whether to air the show with the disgraced presenters and face criticism or shelve a 24-episode series which is likely to have cost millions in licence fee money.
An insider said: ‘They looked at all the options like erasing the presenters altogether and relying on voice-over, but that wasn’t practical, they are so integral to the show.
‘The best solution was to keep the Wallace and Torode shots and banter to a minimum and focus as much as possible on the contestants so their journey becomes more foregrounded.’
Editors reportedly looked through the episodes for any jokes with a sexual element, in order to remove them.
Ordinarily the episodes are given to TV writers before release, but the BBC has kept the series under wraps until it airs.
The series concludes with Irish chef Anna Haugh stepping in to replace Wallace for the final, after the accusations made against him were reported last November.
Ms Shafi took a swipe at the BBC, claiming she was edited out following a ‘heated conversation’ where she felt under pressure to agree in what she later described as a woman ‘getting silenced into extinction’.
She claimed to have felt ‘coerced’ into agreeing to be cut out before the airing of the show was even announced.
‘But I was very firm that, you know, you say it’s life-changing for all those contestants, what I’d probably argue that top 10 at best,’ she said.
‘What about the women? What about those… 43 or those 83 women who have substantiated claims have made, their lives might have changed for the worse.
‘Where’s the respect for them? They’re talking about calling the contestants to see if they’re okay with the show being aired.
‘What about those victims who are going to be re-traumatised by seeing their perpetrators on television again? Did they, did the BBC speak to them?’
When asked by Newsnight what the BBC could do beyond scrapping MasterChef, the contestant questioned ‘where was the learning’ and ‘self-awareness’ from the broadcaster was following allegations of sexual misconduct against its staff.
Six contestants are set to appear in the first episode, in what is heat one of the series.
Vocal coach Beth, 40, said she was inspired by her friend’s father who was a trained chef and would teach her how to cook.
Beth said she would ‘never mess with his steak and ale pie recipe.’
Gemma, 42, was born in Hong Kong, grew up in Singapore and Malaysia before moving to Manchester and then London.
She said she missed Malaysian food so much after moving to the UK that is ‘physically hurt’. She said her cooking is a mash-up of east and west.
Recruiter and Thai boxing coach Gon, 26, from Coventry is looking to overcome a kitchen nightmare as a child to win the competition.
He said as a child he was tasked with making traditional British mince pies, but assumed the recipe called for minced beef.
He said: ‘I got a few laughs in class and the other students got together to share their ingredients with me. Hard to forget that one, and surprisingly, I went on to love cooking.’
Born and raised in New Zealand, writer Penelope, 70, now resides in Dorset.
She said she ‘cannot resist a challenge’ adding ‘why not at 70’.
Digital marketing manager Shaun, 28, said he was first put in the kitchen by his parents aged nine.
He was asked to make a spaghetti bolognese and said his love of cooking began then.
Marketing Coordinator Thea, 28, said she dreams of owning her own restaurant one day in the future.
She said her father was her greatest cooking influence.
Speaking about their decision to air the new series, the BBC said: ‘This has not been an easy decision in the circumstances and we appreciate not everyone will agree with it.
‘In showing the series, which was filmed last year, it in no way diminishes our view of the seriousness of the upheld findings against both presenters. We have been very clear on the standards of behaviour that we expect of those who work at the BBC or on shows made for the BBC.’
Gregg Wallace has claimed he is sorry for hurting the 41 people accusing him of inappropriate behaviour.
He tearfully pleaded ‘I’m not a groper, a sex pest or a flasher’ in his first interview since the BBC axed him following complaints from multiple women over several years.
The former TV show host added that he feels unfairly treated and claims he has been discussed in the same breath as sex offenders Jimmy Saville and Huw Edwards which he says has taken a toll on him and his family.
He told The Sun that he understood some of his actions may have offended people and ‘weren’t socially acceptable’ but denied being a ‘wrong-un’.
The 60-year-old stepped down from the hit BBC cooking show after complaints were made about his behaviour and following a report into his conduct, 45 of 83 complaints were upheld.
Wallace also backed his former MasterChef co-host John Torode, claiming: ‘He’s not a racist’ and said his biggest regret was ever venturing into TV work, adding his life was much better when he was a greengrocer.
The ex Eat Well for Less? presenter said while he didn’t deny being guilty of some of the claims – which included dropping his trousers in front of staff and using inappropriate innuendos – he believed things had been ‘perceived incorrectly’.
He said his actions were the result of learned behaviour and workplace culture, adding: ‘In a room of 200 people, one person complained about my knob joke. It sounds a lot, but you have to consider that I don’t work in an office.’
