John Torode has said the BBC "spat him out" when he was dismissed from Masterchef last summer following a race row involving his former co-host Gregg Wallace, and has revealed that his relationship with Wallace was strictly professional despite acting as his best man. Torode, 61, was sacked over the phone while on holiday, months after Wallace was dismissed following a solicitors' investigation into misconduct allegations, and he described the aftermath as a period of grief. The case matters because it highlights the fallout from the BBC's Masterchef scandal, which also drew in questions about the corporation's leadership amid other controversies at the time.

An investigation by Lewis Silkin for production company Banijay UK upheld 45 of 83 allegations against Wallace, including inappropriate undress, sexual comments and unwanted physical contact, while Torode's own sacking reportedly stemmed from an accusation that he sang a racial slur from a Kanye West song at a 2019 work party, which he says he does not recall. Torode suggested there may have been wider factors at play, hinting the BBC, under then-director-general Tim Davie, could have used him as a scapegoat amid other crises, though he stopped short of pursuing legal action. He also revealed he and Wallace, despite 20 years co-presenting and Torode being best man at Wallace's fourth wedding in 2016, had never visited each other's homes. Since leaving the show, Torode has launched a YouTube cooking channel with his wife, actress Lisa Faulkner, who was diagnosed with breast cancer earlier this year.