The shock moment Phillip Schofield accused Gino D’Acampo of going ‘too far’ with a lewd joke has resurfaced as the chef faces allegations of sexually inappropriate and intimidating behaviour.
In a historic This Morning clip from 12 years ago, Gino, 48, can be seen cooking up a dish with the assistance of former hosts Phillip, 62, and Holly Willoughby, 43.
However, he appears to rile up co-star Phillip with a cheeky quip about ‘tough meat’ and ‘making love to your wife’, causing the host to reprimand the Italian star live on air.
The video shows Phillip cheerfully stating: ‘We do not want tense meat’ as he stirs a sauce no doubt at the instruction of the chef, who hosted regular cooking segments on the ITV daytime show.
Gino is seen agreeing, telling the pair: ‘We don’t want that because tense meat, it becomes tough meat. Right?’
Looking into the camera, Phillip confirmed: ‘Tense meat is a friend to no one!’
The shock moment Phillip Schofield accused Gino D’Acampo of going ‘too far’ with a lewd joke has resurfaced as the chef faces allegations of sexually inappropriate and intimidating behaviou
In a historic This Morning clip from 12 years ago, Gino, 48, can be seen cooking up a dish with the assistance of former hosts Phillip, 62, and Holly Willoughby , 43
The Italian chef has been rocked by multiple allegations of sexually inappropriate and intimidating behaviour, an investigation by ITV News has revealed (Seen in December)
Standing next to Holly, Gino then continued: ‘No seriously, tense meat it comes a tough meat. That’s why you should never annoy your wife before you make love!
‘You want her to be nice and soft!’
At this, Holly raised an eyebrow but didn’t speak out, instead opting to continue preparing her dish.
However, despite the trio often giggling over sexual innuendos, Phil clearly took umbrage at Gino’s comment.
Turning to Gino, his face hardened as he exclaimed: ‘Now you’ve gone too far! That’s too far’.
As Gino protested his innocence, Phillip – who split from wife Stephanie Lowe in 2020 after coming out as gay – sternly added: ‘That’s a step too far!’
Gino then went to defend his comments but Phillip curtly cut him off and changed the subject as he asked: ‘Do you need salt and pepper in this?’
It comes as the Italian chef has been rocked by multiple allegations of sexually inappropriate and intimidating behaviour, a bombshell investigation by ITV News has revealed. He denies the claims.
Gino appears to rile up co-star Phillip with a cheeky quip about ‘tough meat’ and ‘making love to your wife’, causing the host to reprimand the Italian star live on air
Standing next to Holly, Gino then continued: ‘No seriously, tense meat it comes a tough meat. That’s why you should never annoy your wife before you make love! You want her to be nice and soft!’
At this, Holly raised an eyebrow but didn’t speak out, instead opting to continue preparing her dish
However, despite the trio often giggling over sexual innuendos, Phil clearly took umbrage at Gino’s comment. Turning to Gino, his face hardened as he exclaimed: ‘Now you’ve gone too far! That’s too far’
It has since emerged that ITV have pulled Gino D’Acampo’s latest Italian odyssey show from its upcoming schedules, MailOnline can reveal on Friday.
Two episodes of Gino’s Italy: Secrets of the South, were due to be shown on ITVBe between 6pm and 7pm on Sunday, but will be replaced by an episode of Abbey Clancy: Celebrity Homes.
Mr D’Acampo has faced accusations included using sexualised and aggressive language on TV sets including ‘Gino’s Italian Express’, ‘Gordon, Gino and Fred’s Road Trip’ ‘Secrets of South’, ‘Like Mamma Used to Make’ and ‘Emission Impossible’.
ITV changed its schedules to ensure he will not appear on our screens this weekend and next weekend. But some of his shows will remain available on its ITVX streaming service.
Family Fortunes, the iconic family gameshow hosted by Gino, was due for broadcast in early 2025 but the entire series, filmed last year, has also been canned by ITV.
Known for his cheeky on-screen persona, D’Acampo is at the centre of claims from dozens of people who describe his alleged conduct over the past 12 years as ‘distressing,’ ‘unacceptable,’ and even ‘horrendous.’
According to ITV News, at least one production company was aware of repeated complaints from staff members about D’Acampo’s behaviour – yet continued to work with him on further TV projects.
It has since emerged that ITV have pulled Gino D’Acampo’s latest Italian odyssey show from its upcoming schedules , MailOnline can reveal on Friday
Two episodes of Gino’s Italy : Secrets of the South, were due to be shown on ITVBe between 6pm and 7pm on Sunday, but will be replaced by an episode of Abbey Clancy : Celebrity Homes
One woman, given the pseudonym Hannah, described a disturbing moment during a magazine shoot in 2011.
She claims that, in front of an entire crew, D’Acampo made an explicit sexual comment, telling her he would ‘like to turn me over and f*** me up the a*** against the kitchen counter,’ leaving her humiliated.
‘I remember a ripple of laughter,’ she recalled, while others ‘looked nervously into their cups of tea.’
Hannah said the incident left her feeling ‘horror’ and ‘shock’ but admitted she was not surprised no one intervened.
D’Acampo has firmly denied all allegations, calling them ‘deeply upsetting.’
His legal team said: ‘This allegation from almost 15 years ago has never, until now via a media request, been raised or put to Mr D’Acampo. He does not recall it, nor accept that it happened.’
Known for his cheeky on-screen persona , D’Acampo is now at the centre of claims from dozens of people who describe his alleged conduct over the past 12 years as ‘distressing,’ ‘unacceptable,’ and even ‘horrendous’ (pictured on This Morning)
D’Acampo, who has built a multi-million-pound career on his larger-than-life personality, has denied all allegations against him
In yet another claim, a former colleague alleged that in 2019, D’Acampo aggressively confronted a young crew member over an ice cream.
‘I was present when Gino said to the runner, ‘If you don’t get me a Cornetto, I will f*** your girlfriend,’ the woman told ITV News.
Another crew member who witnessed the incident said the remark had ‘stuck in my head for years.’
‘He was using his power to bully and intimidate us,’ she said. ‘For what? A cookery programme.’
D’Acampo’s representatives responded, saying he was ‘mortified’ by the accusation and ‘does not recall this incident at all.’
A separate claim relates to the filming of Gordon, Gino and Fred’s Road Trip in 2018.
A woman, referred to as Lena, recalled: ‘Without saying hello or good morning, he just loudly announced he felt like f****** that morning.’
Another crew member claimed D’Acampo made a crude comment about a female colleague’s chest, allegedly saying:
‘Shouldn’t we be talking about her t**? They’re perfect, like a mouthful.’
It has since emerged that Objective Media Group, the production company behind Gordon, Gino and Fred, was aware of complaints about D’Acampo as early as 2018.
One woman who worked on Gino’s Italian Express told ITV News: ‘His ‘cheeky chappy’ persona allows him to hide in plain sight. If I see him on TV, I have to leave the room.’
D’Acampo, who has built a multi-million-pound career on his larger-than-life personality, has denied all allegations against him.
His legal team said: ‘No-one has ever made these complaints directly to Mr D’Acampo. He does not recall making these comments, nor does he accept that they were made.’
With ITV and production companies now facing questions about how they handled past complaints, the future of Gino D’Acampo’s TV career remains uncertain
Gino D’Acampo cooking with Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard on This Morning, October 2024
ITV News has seen emails from December 2024 confirming concerns were raised with Objective Media Group over D’Acampo’s behaviour.
In response, the company admitted that he was ‘spoken to’ about his off-screen conduct and ‘bespoke training’ was provided.
A separate statement from ITV stressed: ‘We can categorically confirm that this kind of behaviour is not tolerated by ITV.’
With ITV and production companies now facing questions about how they handled past complaints, the future of Gino D’Acampo’s TV career remains uncertain.
For now, the celebrity chef insists he has been unfairly accused.
Responding to the allegations, in a statement to ITV News, Gino D’Acampo said: ‘I have been told by ITN news that allegations have been made about me acting inappropriately, some dating back over ten years ago.
‘I have never been made aware of these matters previously and the allegations are firmly denied. I would not do anything that I thought would upset or distress anyone. This is simply not in my nature. I do not recognise the version of events being put to me.
‘Not only have these allegations never been raised with me before, I have been repeatedly supported by executives at the highest level and was commissioned on prime-time programmes during the period in which it is now suggested I was acting inappropriately.
‘I am a father, husband and have worked with well over 1,500 people on around 80 productions in my career, which I have been so proud of. I take such matters extremely seriously and the suggestion that I have acted in an improper way against is deeply upsetting.’
MailOnline has contacted D’Acampo’s representatives for comment.
