Gregg Wallace BBC MasterChef replacement race sees ITV star become favourite to take over amid investigation
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GB News
Speculation over who will replace Gregg Wallace at the helm of the flagship BBC cooking competition has grown, with several names emerging as front runners.
Wallace, 60, stepped down from his role as host and judge as at least 13 accusations of inappropriate sexual behaviour were made against him.
Yesterday, Wallace was hit more accusations of misconduct from three women, including claims of groping and exposing himself.
Previously, several women including Kirsty Wark and Kirstie Allsopp had claimed the former grocer of making: "Inappropriate sexual comments."
Wallace's lawyers have previously strenuously denied any wrongdoing, saying: "It is entirely false that he (Wallace) engages in behaviour of a sexually harassing nature."
Despite this, MasterChef’s production company Banijay announced that the 60-year-old would be leaving his role on the programme.
Wallace stepped back from MasterChef
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Earlier today, MasterChef Co-host John Torode confirmed: "I love my job, and I love MasterChef. I love being part of it and will continue to be part of it.”
In his Instagram post, Torode explained he had found the recent reports surrounding MasterChef “truly upsetting”.
However, the 59-year-old tempered his post by asking fans to “respect my silence moving forward” as the Banijay investigation into Wallace continues.
In the wake of the revelations, MasterChef fans have been speculation on who will step in as a new host and judge.
The two front runners to replace Wallace are James Martin and Nigella Lawson
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TV chef James Martin, who hosts a number of cookery programmes on ITV, has emerged as a strong favourite.
Analysis from Betfred gives the 52-year-old 5/2 odds of becoming the new MasterChef host.
Other strong contenders have surfaced including other TV chefs like Lisa Faulkner, the wife of Torode. She has 3/1 odds of joining her husband.
British foodie TV royalty Nigella Lawson was given a 4/1 chance of taking on the role.
Restaurant critic Grace Dent, who frequently appeared as a guest judge on MasterChef, has 5/1 odds.
Italian celeb chef Gino D’Acampo, who made his name as Good Morning Britain’s regular cook, was also given a 5/1 chance.
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Regarding Wallace, Banijay UK has said it is "committed to fully co-operating throughout the process" and called on anyone who has a complaint against Wallace to come forward.
A BBC source reiterated that there was an ongoing process in place being run by Banijay and urged caution around "pre-judging" any of the matters recently raised.
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