The Sun may have announced that they will stop publishing further stories on the Huw Edwards scandal, but it looks like Sky are happy to continue with fresh revelations that Edwards sent ‘flirtatious’ and ‘inappropriate’ messages to BBC employees.
The suspended presenter was named by his wife yesterday as the person who allegedly paid £35,000 to a teenager in exchange for sexually explicit images. The parents of the young person involved, now in his 20s, told The Sun that Edwards’ money had fed their child’s crack cocaine habit. Although, following a police investigation, it appears no crime has technically taken place.
Now, there are claims that 61-year-old Edwards sent suggestive messages to three separate BBC employees, which all made reference to their appearance and made them feel ‘uncomfortable.’ One of the staff members said:
“There is a power dynamic that makes this inappropriate.”
Another worker claimed that the father-of-five had sent them messages on social media before giving them the ‘cold shoulder’.
And a third person, who never actually met Edwards, claimed they would receive late night messages from him, which were signed off with kisses.
Responding to the allegations, a spokesperson for the BBC said:
“We are communicating with staff and will continue to do so. We always treat the concerns of staff with care, and would always urge any staff members to speak to us if they have any concerns.
We have clear processes for making complaints within the organisation, including whistleblowing procedures should someone wish to do so anonymously.”
The allegations come after Edwards’ wife, Vicky Flind, released a statement in which she revealed he has been suffering from mental health issues and was now receiving ‘in-care hospital treatment’:
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.
Huw is suffering from serious mental health issues. As is well documented, he has 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. 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.
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.
Let’s hope he gets the help he needs.
For a look at some of the DMs that social media users claim Edwards sent them, click HERE.
