MasterChef has unveiled the two new judges which are set to take over from Gregg Wallace & John Torode.
Gregg, 60, was sacked following a series of misconduct allegations relating to his time on the series.
Meanwhile John, 59, lost his job after two decades over allegations that he used the N-word.
Since then, speculation has been growing over who will replace them.
It has now been revealed that Grace Dent and Anna Haugh will be taking their place on the hit cooking series, according to The Sun.
Food critic Grace, 51, and chef Anna, 44, beat Monica Galetti and Marcus Wareing to the coveted judging roles.
MasterChef has unveiled the two new judges which are set to take over from Gregg Wallace & John Torode
Food critic Grace Dent, 51, will be take on the coveted role (pictured with John, whom has been axed)
Chef Anna Haugh will judging alongside Grace
A TV source told the publication: ‘It’s really exciting that two women are judging the show, especially as, historically, it’s been dominated by men, but coming to the decision hasn’t been easy.
‘Grace and Anna have brilliant chemistry.
‘They know it’s a big responsibility and can’t wait to deliver for the fans.’
Daily Mail has contacted BBC, Grace, and Anna for comment.
The news comes after MasterChef lost nearly one million viewers as the new series aired last month.
The controversial 21st series aired after arriving on BBC iPlayer earlier in the day – after the broadcaster’s decision to air the episodes.
There was a last-minute scramble to re-edit it and limit the appearances of its stars Gregg and John.
Both presenters had been axed from hosting future iterations of the long-running cookery contest in recent weeks.
The news comes after MasterChef lost nearly one million viewers as the new series aired last month
Just 1.96 million watched the first episode – down from 2.73 million for last year’s launch show, reports The BBC itself
And just 1.96 million watched the first episode – down from 2.73 million for last year’s launch show, reports The BBC itself.
Viewers blasted the ‘tone deaf’ BBC for their ‘bizarre decision’ to push ahead with the latest series after firing both hosts.
Many of those watching felt confused that it had even been aired after what happened – while a body language expert said the presenters lacked ‘on-screen chemistry’.
They penned on X: ‘Shame on the BBC for broadcasting the new series of MasterChef, about time we scrapped the licence fee, absolute joke.’,
‘Watching the new #MasterChef series on BBC – it’s utterly bizarre they’re airing it with Gregg Wallace and John Torode front and centre—after sacking both for misconduct allegation. Pre-recorded or not, this decision feels completely tone-deaf. What were they thinking? #BBCFail.’,
‘Why are these men still on masterchef?.’,
‘Odd watching masterchef with the 2 guys who were fired fronting it. Seems a long time ago that the allegations came out about Wallace in particular.’,
‘I did not know this was going ahead ! The poor contestants their series so overshadowed #MasterChef.’,
Gregg was fired after more than 45 complaints against him were upheld following a BBC investigation
‘#BBC #masterchef have you made a terrible mistake tonight and aired the wrong show #Unbelievable.’,
‘Who getting kicked off today. Weirdly it’s the presenters #Masterchef.’,
John and Gregg were both sacked from the programme in quick succession in July.
Gregg was fired after more than 45 complaints against him were upheld following a BBC investigation.
Australian-born chef John, also lost his job after two decades over allegations that he used the N-word.
The BBC said the host’s contract would not be renewed after a report found he had used an ‘extremely offensive racist term’ during drinks after filming the show.
The complaint against John was revealed in the report into co-presenter Gregg’s inappropriate behaviour.
John identified himself as an unnamed person in the report who was accused of using ‘racist language’.
John was sacked after being accused of saying the ‘worst racial slur there is’
However, the presenter said ‘he had absolutely no recollection’ of the incident and did ‘not believe that it happened’.
A witness told investigators he had apologised immediately, ‘was mortified’ and ‘didn’t use the term as a slur’ in 2018.
However, in a statement, the BBC said: ‘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.
‘The BBC takes this upheld finding extremely seriously.
‘We will not tolerate racist language of any kind and we told Banijay UK, the makers of MasterChef, that action must be taken. John Torode’s contract on MasterChef will not be renewed.’
One contestant, Sarah Shafi, did not appear on the programme after she complained about the behaviour of Gregg.
She claimed she was ‘eyed up and ogled’ by Gregg on the show, while accusing the TV host of making an ‘off’ comment about his reputation with women.
Gregg stepped down from the hit BBC cooking show after complaints were made about his behaviour and following a report into his conduct, in which 45 of 83 complaints were upheld. In total, 41 people complained.
There was a last-minute scramble to re-edit it and limit the appearances of its stars Gregg and John (the contestants are seen)
The review concluded that the ‘majority of the substantiated allegations against Wallace related to inappropriate sexual language and humour’.
It added that ‘a smaller number of allegations of other inappropriate language and being in a state of undress were also substantiated’, with ‘one incident of unwelcome physical contact’ also substantiated.
The ex Eat Well for Less? presenter told the Sun that while he didn’t deny being guilty of some of the claims, he believed things had been ‘perceived incorrectly’.
Gregg claimed that he had worked with around 4,000 people, meaning that just 0.5% of those he has worked with ‘found fault with me’.
He said his actions were the result of learned behaviour and workplace culture and claimed that his recent autism diagnosis also played a role.
‘I know I am odd. I know I struggle to read people. I know people find me weird. Autism is a disability, a registered disability,’ he said.
Gregg has previously said he felt the BBC failed to provide enough support for his condition during his 20 years working on MasterChef.
‘My neurodiversity, now formally diagnosed as autism, was suspected and discussed by colleagues across countless seasons of MasterChef,’ he said.
‘Yet nothing was done to investigate my disability or protect me from what I now realise was a dangerous environment for over 20 years.’
