MasterChef crisis: Wallace and Torode were 'never friends'

The email also said it would not be providing individual feedback on specific allegations.

Alice said it was "deeply unsatisfactory" that she didn't find out whether her complaint had been upheld.

"I feel it's more than within our right to understand more about the investigation than what's shared in the news," she said.

The relationship between Wallace and Torode, meanwhile, is believed to have broken down.

It's notable that over the past year, Torode never backed Wallace. In an Instagram post in December, he appeared to be trying to position himself as separate from his co-host, describing the allegations against Wallace as "truly upsetting".

And in his now-deleted Instagram post last week, where he leaked some findings from the report, Wallace seemed to hint at more to come for his co-host.

"What really concerns me about the short summary is others who have been found guilty of serious allegations have been erased from the published version of events. I, and I'm sure the public, would like to know why?"

Insiders have told me that Wallace was briefing against his former co-presenter.

And they were "never friends," a former MasterChef worker told me.

"Clearly they had a good chemistry when the cameras were rolling. But you rarely saw them interact when the cameras were off," he said.

He says he heard Wallace make crude comments, such as a describing that a dish "tasted like his aunt's vagina".

"And when Gregg was saying inappropriate things like that, John held his counsel. I never saw him step in."

Another former MasterChef worker says the dynamic between the two presenters "seemed off", although she could never pinpoint why.

She also says Torode didn't ever call out his co-host when Wallace made inappropriate jokes. "John would eye roll but not say anything," she said.

Neither Wallace nor Torode responded to requests for comment.

So, after a bruising week, there are still many unanswered questions.

We still don't know who will replace Wallace and Torode. Names being floated include Grace Dent - who has already stepped in on Celebrity MasterChef - and Matt Tebbutt, from Saturday Kitchen.

Executives will clearly be hoping for a fresh start - a palate cleanser if you like - for the show as well as for the wider TV industry.

Whether viewers would bond with new presenters remains to be seen. But unlike other shows, such as Top Gear, which are centred around their presenters, MasterChef was never really about Wallace and Torode.

Readers may also wonder what the men may do next.

For now, Torode's weekend programme is still in ITV's schedule, which aired on Saturday morning. But he will no longer be headlining a food festival next month, with Durham County Council saying he had "decided to take some time out".

Meanwhile, Wallace has posted on Instagram offering his services as a weight loss expert for £200 per session.

More details may emerge about the swearing incident - and the unsubstantiated allegations - prompting further investigations and recriminations about who knew what, when.

The producer I spoke to says what's been reported, "doesn't feel like the show we've been working on over the years".

He said it was a relief to know the show he loves will continue, adding, "I didn't want to see it go down this way."

Additional reporting by Insaf Abbas