2023 was a very controversial year for UK television. Indeed, in the span of three months, three presenters were caught up in major scandals. One of them was Huw Edwards.
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On 9 July 2023, The Sun published an article relaying the anguish of a family whose teenager had been allegedly paid by a BBC presenter for explicit pictures. At the time, the article didn’t name the presenter and it led to days of online speculation while the BBC chose to remain silent.
Finally, this came to a halt on 12 July when, Vicky Flind, Huw Edwards’ wife, released a statement naming her husband as the presenter targeted by The Sun’s article. After that, no updates had been given about the presenter.
In February 2024, Deloitte released its independent review of the BBC’s handling of the situation and, at that time, the family of the young person involved had spoken to The Sun. They had not accepted the BBC's apology.
On 22 April 2024, something that was a long time coming finally happened: the BBC announced that Huw Edwards had resigned and that his resignation had been accepted by the corporation. That announcement came with a whole statement to which the family at the centre of the scandal responded.
Huw Edwards resigns from the BBC
Though the announcement wasn't expected to come out on that day, it didn't come as a surprise. Indeed, Huw Edwards, once the channel's star presenter, hadn't been seen on screen since July 2023. The short statement said:
Huw Edwards has today resigned and left the BBC. After 40 years of service, Huw has explained that his decision was made on the basis of medical advice from his doctors.
The BBC has accepted his resignation which it believes will allow all parties to move forward. We don't believe it appropriate to comment further.
The statement released by the corporation hasn't been accompanied by a statement from Huw Edwards, his family or team.
The young person's family react to the resignation
Again talking to The Sun, the family of the young person allegedly paid by Edwards for explicit pictures have commented on the resignation. They have expressed limited satisfaction.
This isn’t the end for us.
The mother added:
We’re also suffering and have been immensely for nearly a year. We still have so many questions and need the BBC to answer them.
In their conversation with The Sun, the family have also expressed serious concerns about what the consequences of Huw Edwards' resignation will have. The mum said that they are 'worried' that it will lead to them not getting the answers they 'desperately' need. She continued:
If he’s been found to have done something wrong, no action can be taken. My heart is broken.
This has been a traumatic time we feel hasn’t been resolved. We want closure. This doesn’t take us any closer to it.
The BBC reached out to the family directly
While speaking to The Sun the family have also revealed that the BBC sent them an email in addition to the official statement. The email supposedly read:
Thank you for raising your concerns and participating in our investigation.
Moreover, in their statement shared with the press, the BBC write that they believe Edwards' resignation 'will allow all parties to move forward'. That part of the short message didn't sit right with the family who, in their own words, 'are still living through this nightmare'. The young man's step-dad has made the family's stance on the situation quite clear and when he told The Sun:
I’m furious. How can we be left like this?
We have no closure, no answers. We aren’t accepting that. The BBC have a duty of care to us too.
Deloitte's independent review
Earlier this year, on 27 February, Deloitte's independent review was released and, as The Telegraph puts it, it found that ‘the corporation [BBC] mishandled their [the family's] complaint.’
Following that damning conclusion, it was announced that the BBC had apologised to the family of the young person. Indeed, the family had issued a complaint in May 2023 which wasn’t escalated to senior management. The lack of response from the channel led to the family reaching out to The Sun in July 2023.
The Telegraph shares the BBC’s group chief operating officerLeigh Tavaziva's statement:
Although our existing processes and systems are, on the whole, working effectively, this review shows that we need to join them up better to ensure no matter how a non-editorial complaint comes into the BBC it is escalated swiftly, when needed, and dealt with by the right people.
The report also showed that the BBC didn’t sufficiently keep a record of the complaint and what steps were taken to get it resolved. The author of the review writes:
There was no documented process for contact with the complainant and/or follow up, such that when initial attempts to contact the complainant were unsuccessful, the steps to be taken were not sufficiently clear and the process followed was not documented.
On top of this enquiry, the BBC is said to be conducting another investigation into Huw Edwards’ behaviour, even though the police concluded that no criminal activity had taken place.
At the time of the report being released, Huw Edwards made no comment and was reportedly still 'too unwell' to respond. In July 2023, his wife had announced that he had been placed in a hospital as the 'events of the last few days' had worsened the presenter's mental health. However, she assured the public then that, in due time, Edwards would be addressing the scandal.
The young person's family respond to the apology
Talking to The Sun following the release of Deloitte's report, the family of the young person, who was paid to send pictures to Huw Edwards, explained how the apology and admission from the BBC aren’t enough.
The mother said:
We’ve suffered immense pain and it has taken nearly a year which has left me broken.
If the BBC had handled the complaint properly, we would have not had to go through this hell. We have been ripped apart as a family.
The family also said they wanted to know ‘if the suspended News At Ten presenter, 62, has been properly investigated’ by the BBC. The mother shared that she felt relieved that the report ‘backs up’ their claim that the channel hadn’t taken their complaint seriously.
Indeed, at the time, her own child had come out saying that the claims made by his parents were ‘rubbish’. The young person had also stated that ‘nothing inappropriate or unlawful’ had occurred.
Read more:
⋙ Huw Edwards and Phillip Schofield’s scandals trigger demand for change as TV bosses are under fire
⋙ Huw Edwards: BBC Viewers demand to hear from presenter after explicit photo scandal
⋙ 10 most complained about TV moments revealed by Ofcom: From Dan Wootton Tonight to Love Island
Sources:
The Telegraph: BBC apologises over Huw Edwards sex scandal
The Sun: Panicked top BBC presenter ‘who paid for sex pics called youngster twice to demand their mum stops the investigation’
The Sun: ‘Our family’s been ripped apart’ says mum of young person at centre of Huw Edwards scandal after BBC apology
Mirror: Huw Edwards still too unwell to respond to BBC's scandal investigation seven months on
BBC News: Huw Edwards leaves BBC on medical advice
The Sun: FAMILY'S PAIN We’re still suffering, say parents at centre of Huw Edwards scandal as they slam BBC for lack of answers after he quits
