Huw Edwards Named as BBC Host Accused of Paying Teen for ...

Huw Edwards — one of the most recognizable faces on British TV and the host of the BBC’s flagship News at Ten program — has been revealed as having allegedly paid a teenager for sexually explicit photos.

Edwards was named by his wife, Vicky Flind, in a statement issued on the veteran BBC presenter’s behalf to the U.K. Press Association. “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. I am doing this primarily out of concern for his mental well-being and to protect our children,” she said.

And the BBC, in its own statement, said the Metropolitan Police had completed its investigation into Edwards and would take no further action. “We’re grateful to them for completing this work at speed. The police had previously asked us to pause our fact-finding investigation 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,” a BBC spokesperson said in a statement.

The Metropolitan Police in their statement said no criminal charges would be brought amid allegations of payments for sexually explicit images after an investigation that included speaking to the alleged complainant and family. “There is no further police action. As such, the Met has advised the BBC it can continue with its internal investigation,” the UK police force said.

Edwards’ wife in her statement added he faced “serious mental health issues” after he had been treated for severe depression in recent years. “The events of the last few days have greatly worsened matters, he has suffered another serious episode and is now receiving in-patient hospital care where he’ll stay for the foreseeable future. Once well enough to do so, he intends to respond to the stories that have been published,” Flind said, while also appealing for the privacy of her family.

The news about Edwards follows a weekend of speculation and finger-pointing, sparked by a story in U.K. tabloid The Sun on Friday in which the girl’s mother came forward with the accusations, claiming that the requests for photos had begun when her child — now 20 — was 17.

She also claimed that her daughter had used to money — said to have topped £35,000 ($45,000) over three years — to fund her crack cocaine addiction. However, at the time of reporting, it was only revealed that the individual was a well-known male BBC staffer, without a name provided, prompting several TV personalities to publicly announce that it wasn’t them.

The naming of Edwards will come as a huge surprise to many inside the industry and out. The 61-year-old has been the face of the BBC’s news broadcasting for many years, steadily rising up the ranks after joining the broadcaster in 1984. He’s also hosted the BBC’s coverage of many landmark royal events, including the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the funeral of Prince Philip, the death and state funeral of Elizabeth II and the coronation of Charles III and Camilla. He’s also among the BBC’s best-paid TV hosts.

The hailstorm around the initial allegations and now one of its biggest stars presents yet another headache for the BBC. Although it announced over the weekend that a male staffer had been suspended, the mother claimed that she initially approached the network with the complaint in May, yet Edwards remained on air for six weeks. In response, the BBC said that the new allegations presented were of a “different nature,” after which it launched its own investigation and contacted the police.

On Monday, the justice minister Alex Chalk suggested that the broadcaster itself may become the focus of an investigation and urged it to get on with its own internal processes.

Chalk said the public would “expect allegations of that nature to be dealt with very robustly and promptly”, telling Sky News that “it may be that, in the fullness of time, there will need to be an investigation about how this allegation was handled.”