Gregg Wallace suing BBC for causing him ‘distress and harassment’ after historical misconduct allegations sacking

Gregg Wallace - who was fired from his role as a presenter on MasterChef amid claims of misconduct while working on the BBC show - is seeking up to £10,000 in damages over the process. The star is suing the BBC and BBC Studios Distribution Limited over claims the two failed to disclose personal data he requested, causing him “distress and harassment”, court documents show.

His dismissal in July followed an investigation into historical allegations of misconduct, which upheld multiple accusations against him. The BBC and BBC Studios have filed a defence to the claim.

In court documents, seen by the PA news agency, barrister Lawrence Power said Mr Wallace had requested “personal data” from the BBC and BBC Studios related to “his work, contractual relations and conduct”.

Mr Power continued that Mr Wallace made subject access requests (SARs) to both the BBC and BBC Studios on March 6. Requests for access to personal data should be processed within a month, but this deadline can be extended if the information is complex, Mr Power said.

The barrister added that on August 7, the BBC emailed Mr Wallace to apologise for the delay and stated they were “taking all reasonable steps” to process the request in “a timely manner as possible going forward”, but he has still not received a response. BBC Studios is claimed to have told Mr Wallace that it was withholding parts of his personal data due to “freedom of expression”.

Mr Power said that the body had “wrongly redacted” information and had “unlawfully failed to supply all of the claimant’s personal data”. He said: “By reason of the defendants failing to fully comply with the SARs made by the claimant for his own personal data, the defendants acted in breach of their statutory duty and in doing so caused distress and harassment to the claimant.”

Mr Power said Mr Wallace was seeking damages for “distress, harassment and loss of amenity not exceeding £10,000”, damages under the UK General Data Protection Regulation, and interest. He is also seeking a court order that the BBC and BBC Studios comply with the subject access requests.

Wallace co-presented MasterChef for almost 20 years before it was announced he would be stepping away from the role in November 2024 while the misconduct allegations were investigated.

A review by law firm Lewis Silkin later upheld 45 of the 83 allegations against him, including one of “unwelcome physical contact”. The report found the “majority of the allegations against Mr Wallace (94%) related to behaviour which is said to have occurred between 2005 and 2018”, with only one allegation substantiated after that year.

It also concluded that the “majority of the substantiated allegations against Mr Wallace related to inappropriate sexual language and humour”, adding that “a smaller number of allegations of other inappropriate language and being in a state of undress were also substantiated”.

The report noted that during the course of the investigation, which lasted seven months, Wallace was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, and said the findings should be viewed in the context of his neurodiversity.

In July, MasterChef production company Banijay UK and the BBC said they had agreed “Mr Wallace’s return to MasterChef is untenable”, with the broadcaster saying the presenter’s behaviour “falls below the values of the BBC and the expectations we have for anyone who works with or for us”.

“Although the full extent of these issues were not known at the relevant time, opportunities were missed to address this behaviour, both by the production companies running MasterChef and the BBC. We accept more could and should have been done sooner,” it added.

The 60-year-old later issued an apology, saying he was “deeply sorry for any distress caused” and that he “never set out to harm or humiliate”.

The former greengrocer added: “For eight months, my family and I have lived under a cloud. Trial by media, fuelled by rumour and clickbait. None of the serious allegations against me were upheld. I challenged the remaining issue of unwanted touching, but have had to accept a difference in perception, and I am deeply sorry for any distress caused. It was never intended.”