Paddy McGuinness says ‘that was not the case’ as he shares real reason he replaced Gregg Wallace on BBC show

Paddy McGuinness has addressed Gregg Wallace’s Inside the Factory exit after the comedian replaced him on the hit BBC show.

Gregg, 60, quit the show after seven series in 2023, saying he wanted to spend more time with his young son. However, in 2024 the presenter faced a series of allegations of misconduct.

In November, the BBC said Gregg would step away from Masterchef amid an external review of historical allegations of misconduct. Lawyers for the presenter have said it is entirely false that he engages in behaviour of a sexually harassing nature.

In his absence, food critic Grace Dent, 51, is set to join John Torode on Celebrity Masterchef. While Top Gear star Paddy had already taken up fronting Inside the Factory.

When asked if it was his predecessor’s fall from grace that landed him the role, Paddy told the Daily Mail: “No, that was not the case. Gregg had already decided to leave when they approached me two years ago. I’ve recorded two series, it’s just only one has been shown”.

And while many people may assume otherwise, Paddy explained: “I wasn’t going to go online and point this out. I don’t need to do that.

Paddy, 51, is no stranger to the production line either, having worked in factories around Bolton when he was a younger man. In one episode, viewers even watched on as he returned to a Warburtons factory he worked in as a teenager.

Paddy, who says he used to work cleaning machines in the factory, returned driving a HGV through the gates, having secured his licence while working on Top Gear. He admits fronting the hit TV show is a world away from where Paddy thought his career would go. He added:” When I worked there at 16, never in a million years did I think something like that would happen. “

Paddy rose to fame starring in a host of TV shows with friend Peter Kay. While he made his television debut during an episode of dating show God’s Gift, he subsequently appeared in Phoenix Nights and That Peter Kay Thing before starring in Max and Paddy’s Road to Nowhere.

He has since gone on to appear in a string of programmes, including a nine-year spell presenting Take Me Out and five series of Top Gear. The motoring show was cancelled two years ago however after co-host Freddie Flintoff suffered a serious accident.

Paddy, who describes himself as a” sentimental person”, admits he misses the show. In particular he says you become” very close “with the people working on the programme while” roughing it together”.

Paddy now hosts Tempting Fortune, which is set to return later this month. The show sees 12 contestants giving up their luxuries as they embark on a gruelling 18-day trek across Malaysia with only basic survival gear.

Each will be hoping to complete the journey and reach the £300, 000 prize. They can however spend some of the cash pot on a series of” temptations”. Viewers will watch on as they attempt to resist temptation and secure the money.

Source: Mirror