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Celebrity MasterChef viewers were left bemused to see John Torode present the show when it returned on Monday, months after being axed by the BBC.
The host, 60, was given the boot in July after being accused of using a racist slur, while co-host Gregg Wallace was sacked after more than 40 complaints about his conduct were upheld, including inappropriate sexual language and unwelcome physical contact.
Before his exit John filmed the Celebrity series alongside new addition Grace Dent, 52, with the BBC revealing that while it had not been a ‘straightforward decision’ to air the series, every celebrity contestant and guest featured had given their blessing.
Nevertheless, many viewers were still stunned to see John back for the new episodes which featured stars including singer Anthony Costa and Drag Race star Ginger Johnson as the MasterChef kitchen moved north to Birmingham.
They said: ‘I thought John had been sacked as well?!?!’: ‘I thought John got sacked an all? And why tf are they in Birmingham?!:’ Torode?’.
While others couldn’t help but pick up on John’s poor choice of words: “john’s first line includes “Brand New Judge” oh made if only you knew’: ‘John: “Somebody is going to be leaving”‘: ‘John: It’s #celebritymasterchef and we are back You’re not back for long fella’.
It comes after new host Grace opened up about the state of her relationship with John and Gregg after replacing the axed pair on the BBC show.
The food critic, 52, will take over the reigns fill time when she joins Anna Haugh, 44, to present the 2026 series and admitted it was time to rescue the cookery competition from the ‘male energy’.
While gushing over her ‘friend for life’ John, with whom she presented one series of MasterChef before his axing, she admitted that while Gregg was not the man she thought, her opinion on him was ‘irrelevant’.
‘I absolutely adore John Torode, he is one of the kindest, most concerned, clever, thoughtful men that I know’.
Moving onto Gregg she said: ‘After reading the entire [BBC report], my recollections of having a nice time with him, drinking coffee and having a biscuit now and again is pretty much irrelevant. For me to sit here now and go: “Well, that’s not the Gregg that I knew” is beside the point because it’s not about what I think’.
She also admitted ‘shutting out’ what Gregg said publicly following his axing, including blaming his working class roots, as she worked hard to concentrate on her new role.
Grace said the show, which she had previously appeared on numerous times, was a ‘very male place’ which is something that will now change under her and Anna’s leadership.
She told The Times: ‘The was utter male energy all the time, to be there now with a woman by my side, it’s fantastic’.
Meanwhile John took to social media to say that he feels he has ‘nothing to prove and ‘doesn’t need to convince anyone he’s a good person.’
He shared a post on Instagram Stories which read in full: ‘The best decision I ever made? To be quiet and move on. I have nothing to prove.
‘I’m not here to convince anyone to love me or that I’m a great person. I’m not fixing what I didn’t break, and I’m not fighting for anyone to see my worth.
‘Whatever you do is on you – and that’s your journey, not mine. As for me? I’m moving forward.’
John went on to front the show alongside new host Grace, before claiming he learned via the BBC News website that he had been axed.
His latest post came on the day the BBC’s director-general Tim Davie resigned after 20 years at the corporation following concerns about impartiality, including how a speech President Trump made on January 6 2021 was edited in a Panorama documentary.
Since Tim took the top job in 2020, the corporation has faced many crises.
They include the prosecution of newsreader Huw Edwards over possession of indecent images of children, the axing of MasterChef presenters Gregg and John and the airing of a performance of Bob Vylan at Glastonbury, when its lead singer chanted ‘Death to the IDF’.
It now appears John has moved on from MasterChef and accepted his fate.
His wife Lisa Faulkner exclusively told Daily Mail: ‘MasterChef will not be the same without John. But he’s doing OK.’
And John previously said: ‘Life goes on! I’ve had a lot of support and I’m very grateful.’
Meanwhile, Gregg is suing the BBC and one of its subsidiaries for causing him “distress and harassment”, after being sacked from the corporation in July.
