The name of the BBC star presenter, who has been accused of child pornography, was finally revealed by his wife on Wednesday. Notably, Huw Edwards was the one who announced the Queen’s death live on September 8, 2022.
British public broadcaster has been at the center of a sex scandal for several days. On Friday July 7, The Sun tabloid published the anonymous testimony of a mother who accused a BBC star presenter of trying to get photos of her underage, naked child. So far, his identity has been kept top secret, despite pressure from newspapers, MPs and even some of his colleagues who have been charged on his behalf.
>> UK: BBC suspends presenter accused of paying minors for ‘sexually explicit photos’
On Wednesday, July 12, Huw Edwards’ wife took the floor and admitted that the allegations were directed at her husband. “I am making this statement on behalf of my husband, Huw Edwards, after five extremely difficult days for our family,” his wife, Vicky Flind, wrote in a statement while her husband, who suffers from chronic depression, is hospitalized with health problems. On the same day, the police announced that they ruled out a criminal offense since no criminal offense had been found in this case.
BBC journalist for almost 40 years
Born in South Wales, Huw Edwards began his career as a journalist after studying French. He began his career in Wales and joined the BBC in 1984. At first he was a political journalist, then he rose in career. In 1994 he became the presenter of the 6 p.m. news, and from 2003 the evening news.
For 20 years he has been one of the UK’s best known and highest paid presenters at the BBC. On average, he earns £400,000 a year (more than €460,000). In 2018, he took a pay cut when the BBC gender pay scandal came to light.
He announced the death of Queen Elizabeth II live
In more than 40 years in the business, Huw Edwards has covered major current events for the BBC, such as the inauguration of Barack Obama in 2008 or the death of Nelson Mandela in 2013. He has also accompanied viewers on historical events in the UK. He commented on the wedding of the royal couple William and Kate, the opening of the London 2012 Olympic Games and most recently the coronation of Charles III.
But Huw Edwards is best known as the face who announced the death of Queen Elizabeth II live.
On September 8, 2022, the BBC launched a special and it was the face of the British presenter who solemnly announced: “Buckingham Palace has announced the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.” He then had the antenna until the sovereign’s funeral hardly left.
>> Queen Elizabeth II has died at the age of 96 after 70 years of reign, Buckingham Palace announces
He is accused of child pornography…
Although Huw Edwards is one of the most well-known presenters in the UK, his name has now been linked to allegations of child pornography against him. In the statement published by The Sun last Friday, a mother accuses the 61-year-old of paying her 17-year-old child £35,000 (almost €40,000) over a three-year period in exchange for pornographic images. According to the mother, this would have increased the child’s crack addiction.
For his part, the minor in question (his gender is not specified in the Sun article) denied the allegations with the voice of his lawyer. The latter, in a letter received by the British public broadcaster giant, reiterated that “nothing inappropriate or illegal had taken place in between”. [son] Client and BBC personality.” “The allegations reported in The Sun newspaper are nonsense,” the lawyer added, according to the BBC.
…and abusive and threatening behavior
Since these revelations, further allegations have appeared in the British press. The Sun claims the presenter visited the home of a 23-year-old in February 2021 amid the Covid-19 restrictions. The young man described him as “very arrogant” and “very insistent”, adding that Huw Edwards paid him £650 after they met. The Sun also claimed he reached out to another 17-year-old he didn’t know on Instagram in 2018.
BBC News has revealed that the presenter sent threats from his mobile phone to another young person he met on a dating website after the youngster suggested he would reveal his identity.
In the face of these numerous revelations, the BBC said it would continue its internal investigations to shed light on the matter. The broadcaster has also suspended Huw Edwards since Sunday, two days after the Sun revelations.