Stephen Mulhern apologises to tenants over ‘squalor’ at his rental home
Presenter Stephen Mulhern says he is “absolutely mortified” to learn that tenants in a bungalow he owns in Leicester have been living in damp and mouldy conditions.
The 47-year-old star owns a property firm called JFDI Productions, which rents out several houses and is worth over £4m according to company filings.
One of the tenants shared images of a bungalow he rents in Leicester, showing mould on walls and ceilings throughout the home, with the Big Issue.
Speaking to the street paper, the man, who wished to remain anonymous, said he felt “bitter and alienated” after living with damp and mould in the property for two years.
He said he and his flatmate began noticing a damp problem during an annual inspection with the management agent, Connells, a couple of years ago.
The pair – who were both key workers during COVID – said they pay £775 for the house per month.
Despite saying they complained to the management agency about the issue multiple times since then, they say no action has been taken, with the damp affecting rooms throughout the house.
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They said the agent had advised they “ventilate the properly and keep the house warm during the winter,” but the situation had continued to worsen.
“We remained patient, sending polite emails at first. In later conversations, my remarks became a bit sharper,” he said.
Although they said high humidity readings in the house had eventually persuaded the management agency to install “a positive input ventilation system”, they said that had only temporarily improved conditions.
The tenant described Mulhern as “a millionaire, profiting off our misery”.
Mulhern co-hosts Dancing On Ice with Holly Willoughby. Pic: Matt Frost/ITV/Shutterstock
‘Absolutely mortified’ about the ‘unacceptable’ situation
Responding to news of the state of the home, a representative for Mulhern told Sky News the presenter was “absolutely mortified to learn about this situation and the awful experience the tenant has faced which is clearly unacceptable”.
They said he had not been made aware of any of the issues and had relied entirely on the company that manage the property on his behalf.
They said he has now “personally requested for a team of damp specialists to visit the property to make sure that the problems with the ventilation and mould are resolved as a matter of urgency”.
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Additionally, they confirmed the tenant had been contacted “to express sincere apologies for the distress and frustration the management of this matter has caused”.
They said the situation “falls way below the standards Stephen expects and he is doing everything possible to remedy this ASAP, and this process is already under way”.
A representative for Connells told Sky News: “As agents we work on behalf of the landlord and we continue to work with the landlord’s representative to address the issues raised’.”
Mulhern, who was announced as co-presenter of Dancing On Ice last year replacing Philip Schofield, will front the new series of the show alongside Holly Willoughby when it kicks off in January.
Entertainment
Gregg Wallace: Over half of allegations against MasterChef presenter substantiated, including one of unwanted physical contact
An investigation into Gregg Wallace’s “inappropriate behaviour” on MasterChef has found that more than half of the allegations against him have been substantiated, including one of “unwanted physical contact”.
MasterChef’s production company Banijay UK shared a summary of its report into historical allegations of misconduct against the 60-year-old presenter, carried out by independent law firm Lewis Silkin over seven months.
The report also said the number of sustained allegations made Wallace’s return to MasterChef “untenable”.
The investigation heard evidence from 78 witnesses, including 41 complainants.
There were 83 allegations against Wallace, and 45 of them were substantiated. All were related to MasterChef.
While the majority of the substantiated allegations related to inappropriate sexual language and humour, a smaller number of allegations of other inappropriate language and being in a state of undress were also substantiated.
One allegation of unwanted physical contact was substantiated.
Nearly all the allegations against Wallace were related to behaviour which is said to have occurred between 2005 and 2018, with just one substantiated allegation taking place post-2018.
Wallace and Anne-Marie Sterpini in 2014
Ahead of the publication of the summary, Wallace had said he had been “cleared of the most serious and sensational accusations” made against him.
Additionally, the report summary found that there were also 10 standalone allegations about other people between 2012 and 2018/2019, two of which were substantiated. Those people were not named in the summary.
The investigation found that complaints had previously been raised with the production company between 2005 and 2024.
Gregg Wallace on MasterChef. Pic: BBC/ Shine TV 2024
While the report flagged inadequate reporting procedures prior to 2016, when Endemol merged with Shine ahead of Banijay acquiring Endemol Shine in 2020, it said there were significant improvements to HR processes and training after 2016.
While the investigation said some formal action was taken by the BBC in 2017, it also noted the corporation held no information regarding concerns raised over Wallace centrally, resulting in issues being addressed as a first offence.
Sky News has tried to contact Gregg Wallace for contact today.
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