Martin Clunes is to play newsreader Edwards in new Channel 5 drama described as an "important and shocking story of how a man in a position of power and trust betrayed that status.”
20:00, 07 Jan 2026Updated 20:14, 07 Jan 2026
Doc Martin star Martin Clunes is to play shamed BBC presenter Huw Edwards in a new drama which portrays his downfall. The two-part show is being made by Channel 5 and is said to recount the presenter’s “double life” and how the scandal unfolded.
It is said to paint a “complex, emotional and nuanced portrait, revealing how the grooming of a vulnerable 17-year old over many months led to Edwards’ downfall, disgrace and the end of his life in the public eye.” Ben Frow, chief content officer at 5, said: “This is an important and shocking story of how a man in a position of power and trust betrayed that status.”
Edwards was one of the BBC’s highest-paid newsreaders, known for presenting the BBC’s News at Ten for decades, and even announced Queen Elizabeth II’s death. But his downfall began after a newspaper report in 2023 alleged that a “top BBC Star” had paid the teenager £35,000 for sexual pictures.
Days later, his wife named him as the presenter at the centre of the scandal and the newsreader later resigned. The young man at the centre of the scandal later told the Mirror how the newsreader had taken advantage of him. He added: “I want to tell the truth about what happened… I’ve stayed silent for so long to protect Huw, but I feel sick at what has happened.”
The man, who was then 21-years-old, said he felt like Edwards “groomed” him. The man told the Mirror: “Although it was a friendship at the beginning, it did change. He would say things like, ‘Are you going to do something for me then?’ I needed help, so I did. I feel like he sort of fed on my vulnerability… as he knew I needed the money. I felt like I was being groomed.”
The young man admitted sending X-rated messages and videos at the time. He added: “Because of who he was as a BBC presenter and because he had such power… I felt like i trusted him and that he cared. But that’s how the manipulation started. I looked up to this man but he didn’t really care about me. I felt like he was taking advantage of me but I felt I had to listen to him because he was Huw Edwards.”
Edwards was later charged in June 2024, following a unconnected Met Police investigation, not involving the young person. He pleaded guilty to making indecent images of children and admitted to having 41 photographs on WhatsApp, including seven of the most serious type. The drama is set to air in the next few months.