John Torode has broken his silence after being sacked from MasterChef on the BBC.
It was confirmed by the BBC and production company Banijay UK last month that the 59-year-old's contract on the popular show would not be renewed.
Australian-born Mr Torode started presenting MasterChef alongside Gregg Wallace in 2005 and confirmed he was the subject of an allegation of using racist language.
This was upheld as part of a review carried out by law firm Lewis Silkin into the alleged behaviour of his co-presenter, Mr Wallace.
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A statement from Banijay UK said: “In response to John Torode’s statement, it is important to stress that Banijay UK takes this matter incredibly seriously.
“The legal team at Lewis Silkin that investigated the allegations relating to Gregg Wallace also substantiated an accusation of highly offensive racist language against John Torode, which occurred in 2018.
“This matter has been formally discussed with John Torode by Banijay UK, and whilst we note that John says he does not recall the incident, Lewis Silkin have upheld the very serious complaint.
“Banijay UK and the BBC have agreed that we will not renew his contract on MasterChef.”
A BBC spokesperson said: “John Torode has identified himself as having an upheld allegation of using racist language against him.
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“This allegation, which involves an extremely offensive racist term being used in the workplace, was investigated and substantiated by the independent investigation led by the law firm, Lewis Silkin. John Torode denies the allegation.
"He has stated he has no recollection of the alleged incident and does not believe that it happened. He also says that any racial language is wholly unacceptable in any environment.
“The BBC takes this upheld finding extremely seriously. We will not tolerate racist language of any kind and, as we have already said, we told Banijay UK, the makers of MasterChef, that action must be taken.
“John Torode’s contract on MasterChef will not be renewed.”
The 59-year-old has now broken his social media silence since the controversy and posted a photograph of his dog, Rory.
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A caption alongside the pooch pic said: "Good morning, a new day, new week, new month."
The sentence was penned alongside a praying emoji as Mr Torode did not make any direct mention of the ongoing saga.
His wife Lisa Faulkner, whom he married in 2019 at Oxfordshire's Aynhoe Park near Banbury, has spoken on the topic recently.
On Monday (July 28), the actress posted a video on Instagram and said: "Hi there, I just wanted to check in and say hello, and I’m here.
"Just thank you for all your really lovely comments because they really mean a lot, so thank you."
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