MasterChef contestant 'edited out' of new series after asking BBC to axe show

A contestant on the upcoming series of MasterChef has claimed that she's been edited out of the show after objecting to it airing over allegations against Gregg Wallace and John Torode. Leeds-based Sarah Shafi revealed that she told producers that airing the show would send the wrong message about the treatment of women.

Earlier this month, Wallace and Torode were both officially sacked from MasterChef after law firm Lewis Silkin upheld 45 out of 85 complaints against Wallace of inappropriate behaviour. It was later announced that Torode's contract would not be renewed following an upheld complaint of racist language against him - which he's said he has no recollection of.

The pair will still appear in an upcoming series of MasterChef, which was filmed before Lewis Silkin's report into the pair's behaviour. It comes after the BBC confirmed that the MasterChef series featuring Gregg Wallace and John Torode will air on TV after the serious allegations.

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In an interview with The Guardian, Sarah said that Banijay offered to edit her out of the show, which she initially rejected but later agreed to be removed. "I didn’t say edit me out,” she said. “I said: ‘Axe the show, don’t air the show. I’m asking you not to air the show.’

"Prominent figures have been abusing their power. What message does that send out to women? For me, it’s about the enabling environment. It’s that complicity. Those individual powerful men do not [act] in isolation. There is an enabling environment, turning a blind eye … It’s about years of these institutions not being accountable."

A spokesperson for the BBC said: "As we said when we announced the show would be aired, this was not an easy decision in the circumstances and we appreciate not everyone would agree with it. Banijay consulted with all the contestants before that decision was made and there was widespread support for it going ahead.

"We are sorry that this contestant does not support the decision and we are grateful she raised this with both the BBC and Banijay." The Mirror has reached out to Banijay for comment.

It was announced last Wallace, 60, would step away from MasterChef last year while Lewis Silkin conducted their investigation. He said at the time through a lawyer: "It is entirely false that he engages in behaviour of a sexually harassing nature."

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