TV stars wade into James Martin bullying claims amid his cancer fight
Dermot O'Leary has weighed in after James Martin issued an apology statement in the light of ‘bullying’ allegations as the celebrity chef also revealed he had been battling cancer. Culinary star James, 51, who regularly appears on This Morning and other ITV shows, has been accused of 'bullying and intimidating behaviour' by crew members
James can be heard swearing 41 times during a furious rant in a leaked audio snippet from a tense Zoom call with staff after the drain at his home was blocked during filming for James Martin's Saturday Morning in 2018. James addressed the accusations and opened up about his private life - revealing a cancer diagnosis as he also apologised for his actions.
In light of the claims, This Morning star Dermot O'Leary, 50, has shared his support for James as he told the TV star to keep his 'chin up'. Taking to Instagram to share his support, Dermot wrote under James' post: "Chin up, shoulders back, butter ready to speed . X." First Dates host Fred Sirieix also offered his support, as he wrote: "Such a shame you felt compelled to do this. Keep your head up. I’m looking forward to your next show and to see you again x."
James Martin shared his cancer diagnosis amid the bullying allegations (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)While actress Denise van Outen typed: "James & @ralph_loulabelle I love you both so much! You’ve always made me feel welcome and you know hanging out with you guys on your show with you’re brilliant team is one of my highlights of the year. I’m so sorry this has been put out into the public domain, when I know you’ve already apologised in private. Sending loads of love to you guys. Can’t wait to see you soon."
Taking to Twitter on Thursday night, James addressed the allegations made against him and offered an explanation for his actions - opening up about struggles in his private life and disclosing publicly for the first time details of a cancer diagnosis. He also apologised to those involved in "the incident".
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He wrote: "Firstly, I would like to publicly and sincerely apologise to the crew involved in this incident, as I did at the time. I have always strived to keep my private life private. However since details of a conversation, which was secretly recorded in January 2018, are now five years later being made public by a former member of our production team, I have decided to make a statement. The end of 2017 was one of the most fraught and difficult periods of my life.
"I was dealing with the death of my last living grandparent, my grandfather, and on account of work commitments I could not attend his funeral. Later that month I was burgled at night by a team of masked men, who entered my house while my partner Louise was at home alone and I was away working. I was devastated that she had to go through alone."
James went on to discuss his diagnosis, telling fans: "I was then diagnosed with cancer on my face and I had to have surgery, which I couldn't do until two days before Christmas when we had finished filming. Since then it has returned on several occasions and I have to have regular treatments.
Dermot O'Leary has shared his support for James Martin (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
Celebrity chef issued an apology on social media (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)"After all this stress I was in a very emotional state, and when after filming in early January 2018 I discovered my home had been flooded while filming, I was extremely upset. I can only say I am human and following a build-up of personal life pressure, I admit that I overreacted regarding the damage to my home."
Reports first emerged on Wednesday [July 26] that James had been accused of 'bullying and intimidating behaviour' by crew members on an ITV show, with concerns about his conduct being raising while filming James Martin's Spanish Adventure. It was claimed that ITV received a complaint in May from James' colleagues about his behaviour.
In the Deadline report, it was claimed reportedly 'berated' staff and 'reduced them to tears' in front of other colleagues. This Morning favourite James also allegedly changed schedules at the last minute, which gave the team a few hours of sleep before the next day's shoot.
A producer who worked with the chef in the past told Deadline: "What’s remarkable is I saw this behaviour on every project I did with him and it feels conscious. I think he just feels like it’s OK to behave like that." This was the second reported complaint ITV received over his behaviour. The previous incident was in 2018. He reportedly went into a 'foul-mouthed tirade' against staff members when a drain in his home became blocked.
Following the accusations being published, ITV released a lengthy statement about the actions taken to resolve the matter. A spokesperson for the channel said: "At ITV people and their welfare are our highest priority. The production companies who make shows for us have primary responsibility for the duty of care of everyone they work with, both on and off screen. We make clear our expectations in this regard as part of our pre-greenlight duty of care processes.
James revealed that he has been battling cancer (Dave Benett/Getty Images for For)
The TV star has been caught up in bullying allegations (Getty Images)"This includes having appropriate independent controls in place to enable everyone who works on their shows to confidently and confidentially raise concerns. Following a complaint we received in May from members of the Blue Marlin production team about the filming of James Martin’s Spanish Adventure, we contacted Blue Marlin to discuss these concerns and to understand how the issues raised were being addressed and what actions were being taken. As a result, we made a number of recommendations for Blue Marlin to implement as soon as possible, sharing best practice of some of our own relevant procedures around staff welfare and reiterating our Supplier Code of Conduct."
Speaking in a statement issued the same day, Blue Marlin TV - the production company connected to many of James' projects - seemingly addressed the claims made against the TV chef from 2018 when filming at his home and shared an apology on behalf of the ITV star.
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The statement shared with the Mirror reads: "An unfortunate incident occurred after filming James Martin's Saturday Morning in 2018 where James' home was badly damaged. Blue Marlin Television accepted responsibility. James was shocked by what had happened and on reflection acknowledges he responded emotionally, which he wholly regrets.
"James apologises for any offence or upset caused, as he did at the time to the crew involved. Following this and some issues filming James Martin’s Spanish Adventures, James and Blue Marlin Television agree that lessons have been learned which have been discussed with members of the team and with ITV."
James is scheduled to next appear on TV our screens this weekend, with ITV set to broadcast James Martin's American Adventure at 9.35am on Saturday, followed by James Martin's Great British Adventure at 12.45pm later the same day.
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