Matt Tebbutt has candidly admitted that his departure from MasterChef: The Professionals after just one series 'could have been handled a lot better.' The 52-year-old television chef, best known for hosting Saturday Kitchen, was revealed last month to be exiting the spin-off format, which sees seasoned professional cooks compete in the kitchen.
Tebbutt had stepped in as host for the 18th edition of the professional series, replacing Gregg Wallace alongside judges Marcus Wareing and Monica Galetti. Despite receiving praise from fans for his inclusion on the show, he has confirmed he will not return for the next series.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4's The Food Programme, Tebbutt told presenter Jaega Wise that the attention surrounding his exit was difficult to handle. 'It was, yes, of course it is [difficult]. I mean, I'm not going to say I wasn't upset. I was really upset. And it could have been handled a lot better. But it is what it is,' he said.
'You know, there's worse things going on. You've got to be pretty resilient. It's part of the game, really,' he added. 'I guess it's like if you're a politician, you're going to get knocks. So it's just par for the course, I think.'
Tebbutt said he 'really enjoyed' his stint on the show, but went into it knowing it was 'a tough gig,' especially in light of Wallace's departure. Wallace, 61, was dismissed by the BBC last July after an investigation into 83 historical allegations of workplace misconduct, with 45 accusations against him subsequently upheld.
'Walking into such an established show, whatever had happened before, you don't want to be that guy that turns up and steamrollers everything,' Tebbutt explained. 'To then go in and get to know the personalities of Monica and Marcus, and get to know the crew and still do your job and deliver, it was a lot.'
He highlighted that forming bonds with the contestants was the highlight of the experience. 'I got really invested in the chefs,' he admitted. 'You see how hard these chefs work and then they have families, and then they go home and have these proper jobs and they still have to practice. They've got a lot resting on this.'
The BBC has been contacted for comment. In March, after reports of his MasterChef exit began to circulate, Tebbutt took to social media to address leaving the series. He wrote: 'A lot of lovely people have contacted me about not doing the next series of MasterChef: The Professionals. I was only ever doing one series and I loved judging on it and will continue working with MasterChef.'
Insiders had speculated that the format of having three judges proved to be a mistake, with a source telling The Sun: 'Three was a bit of a crowd.' 'He didn't do anything wrong and will definitely come back to the series as a guest in the future,' the source added of Tebbutt. 'But bosses simply realised that they could get away with just having Marcus and Monica at the helm, especially as their chemistry is great and they have a tight relationship.'
