The BBC has finally got something right in broadcasting unseen MasterChef

Telegraph

4 days ago

The BBC has made a right dog's dinner of the MasterChef saga, but its decision to broadcast the culinary contest's latest series after all is the right one. In the 'scrap it or screen it?' debate, screening it won out. It's the only wise move that the BBC has made during the whole sorry fiasco.
A spiralling crisis in recent months has seen both the hit programme's judges-cum-presenters, Gregg Wallace and John Torode, exit through the studio kitchen's swing doors, following upheld complaints of inappropriate sexualised language and actions, and use of an offensive racial term respectively. Multiple victims came forward. Inquiries were launched. Self-pitying social media responses were posted. It seemed like every day, there was another twist in this tawdry tale.
Throughout, the BBC has hardly covered itself in glory. It took far too long – years, in fact – to tackle Wallace's misconduct, so keen was it to keep the lucrative show on the road. It ignored duty of care concerns and brushed problems under the carpet, despite his unsavoury antics being an open secret. When scandal finally engulfed the franchise, executives prevaricated, panicked and hung Torode out to dry for what was – at least compared to the litany of charges against his co-host – a relatively minor misdemeanour.
Now, though, the right conclusion has been reached. Despite controversy continuing to swirl around the disgraced duo, the BBC has announced that it will air the series filmed last autumn, before the allegations became public and the pair were sacked. This is only fair. Canning the entire run would have been an injustice. An over-correction which punished the wrong people.
Many TV contests bill themselves as 'life-changing' but MasterChef genuinely is. Many of its amateur alumni go on to work in Michelin-starred kitchens, write recipe books or open their own restaurants. Winning the competition just about guarantees that gifted cooks can quit their day jobs and forge a new career in food.
The latest cohort gave up months of their lives but have been left in limbo. It would have been a huge shame if their hard work had been squandered and their hopes dashed through no fault of their own. Beneath the slick editing and flashy trimmings, the show is about the contestants – watching their skills improve, their confidence blossom, their creativity come to the fore. The word 'journey' is flogged to within an inch of its life on such series but MasterChef traced that trajectory more than most.
The show has always been bigger than its bellowing blokey figureheads who, it turns out, didn't even like each other very much. It's about the compellingly addictive, all-conquering format, which has been rolled out across 60 countries and watched by 300m viewers worldwide. Most of all, it's about the contestants. Not the ghastly greengrocer and the gaffe-prone Aussie but the talented amateurs whose stories viewers love to follow.
Their series was completed and delivered to the BBC by production company Banijay months ago. It has been gathering dust on a shelf ever since, due to the bad behaviour of two individuals. At least it will soon see the light of day. The publicity alone of appearing on the show is priceless to those trying to succeed in the unforgiving hospitality business.
Now that a launch date has been confirmed, Banijay ought to re-edit the 24-part series judiciously, to keep Torode and especially Wallace's contributions to a minimum. Any of the latter's clumsy attempts at 'banter' are now cast in a depressing new light and should be consigned to the cutting-room floor. It will be instructive to see if any disclaimers or trigger warnings are aired at the beginning and end of each episode.
News of the long-awaited decision has also given the BBC and Banijay some breathing space until autumn. Producers now need to get busy. They must smartly set about the task of wiping the slate clean, recruiting new judges and giving the programme a reset.
In the meantime, viewers should pop a TV dinner on Wednesday 6 August in their diaries. Six months after it was originally due to air, MasterChef will return to BBC One and iPlayer. It promises to hold a sort of grim fascination. At least for the contestants, their moment in the spotlight will come at last.