Huw Edwards paid up to £1,500 to convicted paedophile who sent him explicit pictures of children and asked for 'Christmas gift' for 'all the hot videos'

A psychiatrist who examined Edwards said he would be vulnerable and at risk if he were sent to prison. He would also be at risk of suicide.

‘He is no risk to anyone under the age of 18 and has shown insight and shame to his actions’, the psychiatrist wrote in his report.

Since his arrest he has been treated at the Nightingale Hospital in London as an impatient.

by Paul Thompson from Westminster Magistrates Court

Mr Golding said there was no evidence that Edwards got sexual gratification from the indecent images.

He also said there was no evidence that he had sought other images and had not shared those he received from Alex Williams with anyone else.

A psychiatrists report found that he has a low risk of suicide and was a ‘complex individual’ who grew up with a difficult relationship with his father who was described as ‘monstrous’.

The magistrate said Edwards had mental health issues and suffered from depression. He also accepts Edwards has no memory of the images he viewed.

The judge sentencing Huw Edwards has said the former broadcaster’s ‘long-earned reputation is in tatters’.

Chief Magistrate, district judge Paul Goldspring, said:

Perhaps it does not need saying but you are of previous good character.

The judge said he accepts Edwards had been of ‘exemplary’ good character ‘having enjoyed a very successful career in the media’.

‘It’s obvious that until now you were very highly regarded by the public,’ he continued, adding that Edwards was “perhaps the most recognised newsreader-journalist”.

‘It is not an exaggeration to say your long-earned reputation is in tatters,’ the judge said.

by Paul Thompson at Westminster Magistrates Court

Mr Goldspring has returned to Court One of Westminster Magistrates’ Court to resume Huw Edwards’ sentencing.

The chief magistrate has told Edwards to remain seated as he began his sentencing remarks.

He told him he was once the most recognisable faces on TV but that his career was now in tatters.

Edwards has pleaded guilty to three offences.

He sat leaning forward in the dock with his hands rested on his chin

As we wait until 12.30pm for the Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring to pass sentence on Huw Edwards, let’s take a look at the key takeaways from the hearing so far:

• Huw Edwards arrived at Westminster Magistrates Court wearing his wedding ring and wheeling a suitcase as crowds of media gathered outside the building
• Edwards paid a paedophile up to £1,500 after receiving explicit pictures and videos of children with the pair’s exchanges revealed during his sentencing
• Alex Williams told Edwards he had ‘naughty’ and ‘young’ images, to which the BBC newsreader replied: ‘Go on’
• Westminster Magistrates Court the pair exchanged messages on WhatsApp from 2018 to 2022
• Edwards told Williams ‘don’t send underage’ after he received an explicit video of children aged around seven to nine and 11 to 13
• Edwards has said he is ‘profoundly sorry’ for the damage he has caused and admitting he had betrayed the ‘priceless trust’ of those close to him
• The disgraced BBC presenter’s defence barrister said a pre-sentence report showed there was a prospect of rehabilitation for Edwards

by Paul Thompson at Westminster Magistrates Court

Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring has retired to consider the mitigation and said he will pass sentence at 12.30pm.

Edwards was told he could leave the court top get a ‘cup of coffee’ but should return by 12.30pm.

The former newsreader nodded his approval and left the glass front dock.

Huw Edwards was ‘vulnerable’ when Alex Williams first messaged him, the court heard.

Alex Williams sought him out and he sought him out on Instagram at a time when Mr Edwards can properly be described as having been vulnerable.

Independent experts have assessed him as being mentally vulnerable at that time.

The defence barrister continued:

He is no longer on television. You have witnessed the manner in which he has fallen from grace as a consequence of this offending.

He was sought out by Alex Williams and as a consequence of being sought out… in amongst those lawful communications Mr Edwards was sent (images), he did not request in fact he positively at times tried to resist those images – but ended up with them in any event.

by Paul Thompson at Westminster Magistrates Court

Edwards sat with his arms folded in his lap as his barrister set out mitigating factors ahead of sentencing.

He listened intently as Mr Evans KC said a probation report found that he was at low risk of offending.

Mr Evans said Edwards had not looked for the indecent images and that his life had changed since his arrest.

‘He no longer works for the BBC and has fallen from grace. He is no longer on TV,’ he said.

by Paul Thompson at Westminster Magistrates Court

Philip Evans KC said Edwards was ‘profoundly sorry’ for the damage he has caused.

He recognises the repugnant nature of the images and the hurt he has done to those who appear in them

He apologies sincerely and makes it clear he has the utmost regret. He has betrayed the trust and faith of so many people and damaged loved ones and those around him.

He is truly sorry that he has committed these offences.

In presenting mitigation, the court Mr Evans said he had been contacted and sent the images when he was at his most vulnerable.

The BBC has just confirmed Edwards’ sentence will be passed down at Westminster Magistrates Court instead of being moved to crown court.

It means Edwards will not face a prison term of more than 12 months if he does receive a custodial sentence.

by Paul Thompson at Westminster Magistrates’ Court

Huw Edwards’ barrister Philip Evans KC has told the court a pre-sentence report showed there was a prospect of rehabilitation for Edwards.

He stressed that the former BBC newsreader did not create any of the indecent images and that he had been sent them.

He added that the payments made to Williams was not for the purpose of creating the images and had told him not to send under age videos and photos.

Westminster Magistrates’ Court was told Huw Edwards did not respond after a convicted paedophile sent him a sexual video of children aged around seven to nine and 11 to 13.

Prosecutor Ian Hope said:

On February 10, 2021, a category A video was sent which is notable because the age of one of the children involved was significantly younger than in the rest of the images sent – it showed several acts of penetration between two children aged around seven to nine and 11 to 13 respectively.

There was no direct response from Mr Edwards to this video, beyond it being marked as ‘read’. A week later… a number of attachments were sent which included two category B videos and four category C still images comprising indecent images of children.

On February 19 2021, Alex Williams asked ‘is the stuff I’m sending too young for you?’

Mr Edwards responded to him by saying ‘don’t send underage’.

by Paul Thompson at Westminster Magistrates Court

Alex Williams asked for a ‘Christmas gift after all the hot videos’ from Huw Edwards, the court heard.

Prosecutor Ian Hope said the convicted paedophile offered to send 12 videos in December 2020 and the then-BBC presenter responded that he could not see the latest batch but ‘the others were amazing’.

The court heard a new link contained a category C image of a child aged around 12 to 14 and a category A image.

Three-quarters of an hour later, Alex Williams again asks for ‘a Christmas gift after all the hot videos’ and Mr Edwards immediately responds ‘what do you need?’

Alex Williams says he wants some Air Force 1 trainers that cost around £100, and Mr Edwards offers to send him £200.

The court was told Williams had contacted Edwards along with other famous people.

The pair engaged in online chat from 2018 to 2022.

Police were only able to recover a limited amount of correspondence between the two from a Whatsapp chat on an iPhone belonging to Mr Edwards.

The prosecutor said the chat between 19-year-old Williams and Edwards was of a sexual nature.

Huw Edwards wrote ‘yes xxx’ when he was asked by a convicted paedophile if he wanted sexual images of a person whose ‘age could be discerned as being between 14 and 16’.

Prosecutor Ian Hope said:

From that chat in December 2020, Alex Williams said that he had ‘a file of vids and pics for you of someone special’.

Mr Edwards immediately queried who the subject was and was then sent three images of seemingly the same person, from two of which images the subject’s age could be discerned as being between 14 and 16.

These two were category C indecent images of children in which the child was exposing his penis. Alex Williams stated that he had ‘12 videos and 42 pics I’ve sent you a video of him before’.

Shortly after Alex Williams asked: ‘want me to send you the full file?’ Mr Edwards responded ‘Yes xxx…’ immediately following which Alex Williams sent to Mr Edwards around 30 attachments, about half of which were category C indecent images of children.

Veteran broadcaster Huw Edwards sent hundreds of pounds to a convicted paedophile ‘apparently off the back of (him) sending pornographic images to Mr Edwards’.

Opening the case against Edwards at Westminster Magistrates’ Court, prosecutor Ian Hope said:

It is clear from the face of the WhatsApp chat recovered that a deal of the chat between Alex Williams and Mr Edwards was sexual in nature.

It is also clear that Mr Edwards was paying not insignificant sums of money – low hundreds of pounds on an occasional basis – to Alex Williams which Mr Williams directly asked for on several occasions, as gifts or presents, apparently off the back of sending pornographic images to Mr Edwards, about which images they chatted.

“Alex Williams has stated that the money was more generally to support him at university and amounted to around £1,000 to £1,500.

Huw Edwards is now in the dock at Westminster Magistrates Court where he has confirmed his name, date of birth and address.

Prosecutor Ian Hope will now outline the case against the 63-year-old.

His lawyer Philip Evans KC will then make submissions on his behalf before we her from the judge, chief magistrate Paul Goldspring.

by Paul Thompson at Westminster Magistrates Court

Edward’s sentencing had been listed for 10am at the court but was delayed while an unrelated case – drink driving with no insurance – was heard before the magistrate.

Court Number One was packed to capacity with over 40 seats in the public gallery taken mostly by members of the media.

Huw Edwards’ sentencing is expected to start at Westminster Magistrates’ Court.

The BBC is reporting that Edwards is one of two cases listed within a three-hour block for Court One this morning.

It’s possible Edwards will be sentenced today or be passed to a higher court where a more severe punishment could be handed down.

We will bring you the latest developments as and when we can.

The sentencing is scheduled to begin in less than 10 minutes, so let’s remind ourselves exactly what Edwards will be punished for today.

In July, Edwards (pictured above in a court sketch) pleaded guilty to three counts of ‘making’ indecent images in July.

But what does making an indecent image mean?

The Crown Prosecution Service says it can include:

• opening an email attachment containing an image
• downloading an image from a website to a screen
• storing an image on a computer
• accessing a pornographic website in which an image appears in an automatic ‘pop-up’ window
• receiving an image via social media, even if unsolicited and even if part of a group
• or live-streaming images of children

A court must also decide whether an offence calls into the category of possession, distribution or production.

The maximum penalty Edwards faces is three years but that would have to be passed at crown court as magistrates can only hand down a sentence of 12 months.

BBC staff have revealed the Huw Edwards paedophile scandal has felt ‘unending’ on the eve of the disgraced presenter’s sentencing.

Presenters at the corporation have reported ‘feeling sick’ by the ordeal, with one telling the BBC: ‘For staff, particularly those who worked alongside him, it’s been a difficult year.

‘There have been so many twists and turns, it has felt like a blow every time another horror has been unveiled. It has felt unending.’

BBC chair Samir Shah told the House of Lords’ communications and digital committee that he, among other colleagues, ‘feel angry and betrayed’.

Huw Edwards still hasn’t returned £200,000 salary he was paid after being arrested over child abuse images, BBC boss Tim Davie confirmed last week.

The BBC director-general said he hoped ‘to make progress’ to recover earnings from the disgraced former newsreader.

Tim Davie (pictured) told the House of Lords’ Communications and Digital Committee on Tuesday that the money, which spanned from Edwards’ arrest in November until he resigned from the BBC in April, had not yet been returned.

Edwards had been suspended in July last year over separate allegations he had paid a young person for explicit pictures.

We’ve made the formal request, and I can’t go into too much detail, but discussions are under way, but I’ve got no further news, apart from the BBC’s position is clear, the money should be returned, and we made the request.

Huw Edwards appeared at court today still wearing his wedding ring to receive his sentence for receiving sexual images of children as young as seven.

The ring was pictured as Edwards left a taxi which had driven up to the court building in central London.

by Martin Robinson, MailOnline Chief Reporter

Huw Edwards’ BBC colleagues were warned about him and hope he will be jailed over indecent images of children sent to him by a convicted paedophile, MailOnline can reveal today.

BBC staff have described being ‘warned’ about ‘thin-skinned’ Edwards when they started working there – and said that he should be put in prison for what he has done.

Culture and Media Editor Katie Razzall said that when she joined the corporation, she was given specific advice about how to handle the now-disgraced newsreader.

‘You can be funny’, they said. ‘But don’t be funnier than Huw,’ adding: ‘You can be clever, but don’t be too clever,’ Ms Razzall revealed.

During his four decades at the corporation, Edwards was among the broadcasting teams leading coverage of historic events including the late Queen’s funeral in 2022 and most recently the coronation of the King in May 2023.

Edwards also announced the late Queen’s death on the BBC in September 2022.

He joined BBC News as a trainee in 1984 and he later was hired as political reporter for BBC Wales.

Two years on, he became BBC Wales’s parliamentary correspondent and by the early 90s he was the BBC’s chief political correspondent at Westminster.

He became a regular face on the BBC News channel, then called BBC News 24, after it launched in 1997.

In 2003, Edwards was promoted to the Ten O’Clock News, the BBC’s flagship bulletin, before he began to increasingly commentate on major national events for the BBC.

by Paul Thompson at Westminster Magistrates Court

Huw Edwards arrived at Westminster Magistrates Court an hour before his sentencing.

Flanked by his legal team he made no comment as he entered the modern courthouse.

Outside a small group of protestations with placards.

One had the slogan ‘Protect our children. Hold the BBC accountable to reform’.

These pictures show the moment Huw Edwards arrived at Westminster Magistrates Court to be sentenced over child abuse images.

Edwards nodded at crowds of journalists and photographers before walking inside the court with a suitcase he dragged behind him.

The case is due to be heard at 10am.

Huw Edwards has arrived at Westminster Magistrates Court.

The 63-year-old arrived in a taxi and walked past crowds of waiting media before entering the court.

Watch the moment he arrived in our video below:

The mother of the teenager told The Sun that Edwards has caused ‘immense pain and suffering’ and should be locked up.

In a powerful open letter published by the newspaper, she said:

I am today writing this open letter to make you understand the immense pain and suffering you have caused me, my son, my family, your own family – and all of your victims over the years.’

She said that her ‘heart breaks for every one’ of the young children ‘robbed of their innocence forever for your sick pleasure’ and their families who have gone through what she has.

She wrote of how her son was happy before the disgraced news anchor ‘wormed’ his way into the teenager’s life from the age of 17.

The distressed mother said her son began having problems with drink and drugs, which was further fuelled by Edwards’ ‘pestering him for pictures’ and paying him ‘tens of thousands’.

She said Edwards: ‘Sent text messages calling him ‘Princess’ to control him and keep him onside.’

Concluding the letter, she told Edwards:

That you have lost everything is no consolation to us. You will receive your punishment in court.

Crowds have started to gather at Westminster Magistrates Court ahead of Huw Edwards’ expected arrival.

Richard Gaisford, Good Morning Britain’s Chief Correspondent, has told how packs of journalists and photographers are outside the court, while a group of Christian protesters have also pitched up.

We will let you know as soon as Edwards arrives.

Here’s a timeline of the Huw Edwards scandal illustrating how the BBC’s highest-paid star blew up his own career following a scandal over child abuse images.

Edwards announced his resignation from the BBC in April, citing medical advice, having already been suspended the previous July over separate allegations he had paid a young person for explicit pictures.

Edwards was absent from screens from when the story first broke in July 2023 until his exit in April 2024.

Huw Edwards will return to Westminster Magistrates Court this morning following the scandal that has left him in disgrace.

In July, the former newsreader admitted having 41 indecent images, which were sent to him on WhatsApp – including some showing a victim aged between seven and nine.

At his last court appearance, he pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children. Under the law, images can mean photos or video clips.

He was found to have seven category A images – the most serious classification, which show serious abuse including penetrative sexual activity.

Most of the category A images were estimated to show children aged between 13 and 15. Two clips showed a child aged about seven to nine.

He also had 12 category B pictures, which involve non-penetrative sexual activity, and 22 photographs in category C, which covers other indecent images. The category B and C pictures showed children aged between 12 to 15.

Police later revealed the man who sent the images to Edwards was a 25-year-old convicted paedophile called Alex Williams.

Huw Edwards, one of Britain’s most famous newsreaders, will return to court today where he could be sentenced over receiving sexual images of children as young as seven.

The disgraced former BBC News star has admitted three charges of ‘making’ indecent photographs of children after he was sent 41 images by convicted paedophile Alex Williams in vile WhatsApp messages.

The 63-year-old is on conditional bail and is set to be sentenced at Westminster Magistrates’ Court at 10am today, following his guilty pleas in July. He could face up to 12 months in jail.

Hello and welcome to MailOnline’s live coverage as Huw Edwards is sentenced at Westminster Magistrates Court.

The disgraced BBC newsreader will learn his fate today after he pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children in July.

Edwards’ career has been left in tatters after the scandal broke last year. The 63-year-old had anchored the BBC’s coverage of major national events including the late Queen’s funeral.

At his previous court hearing, he was warned he faces a possible custodial sentence when he stands before magistrates.

MailOnline will bring you the latest updates from the sentencing plus reaction following the verdict.