Huw Edwards’ wife released a statement Wednesday that confirmed Edwards as the elusive “BBC presenter” under investigation for an alleged sexting scandal.
Last week, the BBC said it was taking “very seriously” allegations that one of its presenters had paid a 17-year-old for explicit images. The Sun first reported the accusations about a “well-known” BBC presenter, who was not named because of U.K. privacy laws.
That lack of identification sent rumors and accusations flying, and some BBC presenters became the subject of speculation. Several swiftly made statements denying they were the person in question.
Rylan Clark, who’s filming abroad for the BBC, tweeted: “Not sure why my names floating about but re that story in the sun- that ain’t me babe. I’m currently filming a show in Italy for the BBC, so take my name out ya mouths.”
Gary Lineker tweeted that he hated to disappoint any “haters” but the presenter in question wasn’t him either.
Jeremy Vine also defended his innocence, tweeting, “Just to say I’m very much looking forward to hosting my radio show on Monday – whoever the ‘BBC Presenter’ in the news is, I have the same message for you as Rylan did earlier: it certainly ain’t me.”
On Tuesday, Vine added, “I’m starting to think the BBC Presenter involved in the scandal should now come forward publicly. These new allegations will result in yet more vitriol being thrown at perfectly innocent colleagues of his. And the BBC, which I’m sure he loves, is on its knees with this. But it is his decision and his alone.”
After days of a public guessing game over who the mystery man behind the alleged crime could be, Huw Edwards released a statement via his wife, Vicky Flind. The 61-year-old Edwards is the main nighttime BBC bulletin anchor.
“In light of the recent reporting regarding the ‘BBC Presenter’ I am making this statement on behalf of my husband Huw Edwards, after what have been five extremely difficult days for our family,” Flind began.
“I am doing this primarily out of concern for his mental well-being and to protect our children. Huw is suffering from serious mental health issues. As is well documented, he has been treated for severe depression in recent years.”
Flind continued that the last several days had “greatly worsened” matters and that Edwards had “suffered another serious episode” and was receiving in-patient hospital care “for the foreseeable future.” According to Flind, her husband plans to address the allegations against him once well enough to do so.
“To be clear Huw was first told that there were allegations being made against him last Thursday. In the circumstances and given Huw’s condition I would like to ask that the privacy of my family and everyone else caught up in these upsetting events is respected,” she added. “I know that Huw is deeply sorry that so many colleagues have been impacted by the recent media speculation. We hope this statement will bring that to an end.”
The claims against the well-known broadcaster, who announced Queen Elizabeth’s death and reported during King Charles’ coronation, broke last week when the Sun reported that the presenter had paid more than $45,500 to a young person in exchange for explicit photos, beginning when the person was 17.
The alleged recipient’s mother told the Sun that she blamed the BBC anchor for destroying her child’s life, and that the money had been used to feed a drug problem.
“When I see him on telly, I feel sick,” she told the outlet of Edwards. “Taking my child’s innocence and handing over the money for crack cocaine that could kill my child.”
The mother later claimed that she saw Edwards on the youth’s phone, in a screen shot taken from a video call in which the broadcaster is seen “leaning forward, getting ready for my child to perform for him.”
The BBC also released its own statement: “We have seen the statement from the police confirming they have completed their assessment and are not taking further action. We’re grateful to them for completing this work at speed. The police had previously asked us to pause our fact finding investigations and we will now move forward with that work, ensuring due process and a thorough assessment of the facts, whilst continuing to be mindful of our duty of care to all involved.”
The young person, however, has their own lawyer and a different take. On Monday evening, the individual’s attorney told the BBC that “nothing inappropriate” had happened between the young person and Edwards.
“For the avoidance of doubt, nothing inappropriate or unlawful has taken place between our client and the BBC personality and the allegations reported in the Sun newspaper are rubbish,” the lawyer wrote, according to the BBC.
In another twist, on Tuesday, a different young person approached the BBC, claiming they’d engaged with Edwards via a dating app, and that the anchor allegedly pressured them to meet up, but they never did. According to the BBC report, the 20-year-old individual also alleged that when they hinted online they might name the presenter, they were sent “abusive, expletive-filled messages.”
Edwards, who is married with five children, was suspended from the BBC on Sunday.
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