The BBC has been rocked by yet another paedophile scandal following news that Huw Edwards has been charged with creating indecent images of children.
Here are all the stars the broadcaster failed to act on at the time. These include Jimmy Savile, Rolf Harris and, now, Huw Edwards.
BBC paedophile scandals – Jimmy Savile
Once upon a time, Jimmy Savile was possibly the most famous man in Britain.
The now-disgraced TV presenter fronted the smash-hit Jim’ll Fix It between 1975 and 1994. In this show, he made children’s dreams come true.
However, the vile presenter had a dark side. He was, in reality, a notorious paedophile and abuser. He escaped justice during his lifetime. However, hundreds of people came forward following his death, accusing him of rape and sexual abuse.
Savile’s abuse took place between 1940 and 2009 – ending two years before his death.
In 2016, it was reported that the BBC had “missed opportunities” to stop Savile due to a “culture of fear”.
“What this terrible episode teaches us is that fame is power, a very strong form of power and like any form of power it must be held to account… and it wasn’t,” the BBC Director General Tim Davie said.
BBC Trust chairwoman Rona Fairhead also said the BBC had “turned a blind eye, where it should have shone a light”.
Rolf Harris
Australian entertainer Rolf Harris – who appeared on the BBC from the 1950s up until his arrest – was another famous face who used his celebrity status to carry out vile acts.
Harris was arrested in 2013 during Operation Yewtree – a police investigation looking into historical sex abuse allegations against high-profile figures.
He had previously been a national treasure – and had even painted a portrait of the late Queen for her 80th birthday.
However, in 2014, the disgraced entertainer was charged with nine counts of indecent assault and four counts of making indecent images of children. Later, he was charged with an additional three charges of assault. Despite pleading not guilty, he was sentenced to five years in prison.
He served three years of his sentence before being released in 2019. In October 2022, it was reported that he had been diagnosed with neck cancer and was receiving 24-hour care. He died in May 2023 at the age of 93.
Complaints were made over the BBC for ‘turning a blind eye’ to Harris’ crimes. However, the broadcaster argued that the abuse did not relate to the BBC.
Stuart Hall
It’s A Knockout host Stuart Hall was another BBC star who was accused of abuse and grooming.
In 2012, the presenter was awarded an OBE, however, a journalist came forward shortly afterwards claiming he’d groomed and sexually abused her in the 1970s.
He was arrested in December 2012 and charged with counts of indecent assault against a 16 or 17-year-old in 1974, a nine-year-old in 1983, and a 13-year-old in 1984.
A month later, he was charged with raping a 22-year-old girl, as well as indecently assaulting a further 10 girls, whose ages ranged between nine and 17. In October 2013, he was charged with 16 further offences, including the rape of a 12-year-old girl.
He was jailed for 30 months. He has since been released from prison.
Huw Edwards BBC paedophile scandal: Who else? Jonathan King
Presenter and singer Jonathan King was a member of paedophile ring Walton Hop.
During the 1980s, he played prominent roles in BBC shows such as Top of the Pops.
However, in 2001, his despicable actions were brought to light when he was convicted for sexual offences committed in the 1980s against five boys aged 14 and 15.
He was jailed for seven years. Following his release, he published several books and still writes a column for prison magazine Inside Time.
Chris Denning
One of the original BBC Radio 1 presenters, Chris Denning was repeatedly found guilty of various child sex offences.
Denning was a also member of the Walton Hop pedo ring. Denning was first convicted of gross indecency and indecent assault in 1974.
He was put behind bars in 1983 for gross indecency with a child. He was jailed again in 1988 for three years, this time for indecent assault on a 13-year-old boy and possession of indecent photographs.
In 2000, he was charged with offences against boys under 15 in the Czech Republic. Upon his return to the UK in 2005, he was put behind bars after admitting to five charges of indecent assault of boys aged under 16.
In 2008, he was extradited to Slovakia where he was jailed for five years for creating child porn. In 2014, he was sentenced to 13 years in prison after admitting to 40 sexual offences. He was given a further 13 years after pleading guilty to a further 21 sexual offences.
He died in 2022 at the age of 81.
Chris Langham
The Thick of It actor Chris Langham, 75, won awards for his portrayal of cabinet minister Hugh Abbott in the BBC comedy.
However, in 2005, he was arrested as part of Operation Ore. This investigation targeted credit-card customers paying to access indecent and abusive images of children on the internet.
In 2007, he was found guilty of downloading 15 child sex abuse images and videos.
He was sentenced to 10 months in prison, however his sentence was reduced to six months after an appeal.
The BBC came under fire for uploading his episodes of The Thick of It to iPlayer.
BBC paedophile scandals – Huw Edwards
Most recently, former BBC News presenter Huw Edwards has been charged with making indecent images of children.
The disgraced presenter resigned from the BBC in April after he was accused of paying a teenager thousands of pounds for sexually explicit pictures.
A Metropolitan Police spokesman has said: “Huw Edwards, 62, of Southwark, London has been charged with three counts of making indecent images of children following a Met Police investigation.
“The offences, which are alleged to have taken place between December 2020 and April 2022, relate to images shared on a WhatsApp chat. Edwards was arrested on 8 November 2023. He was charged on Wednesday, 26 June following authorisation from the Crown Prosecution Service.”
It was reported that there were two images of a young child aged between seven and nine.
He could face up to 10 years in prison.
BBC statement on Huw Edwards
The BBC released a statement following Edwards’ guilty plea.
“The BBC is shocked to hear the details which have emerged in court today. There can be no place for such abhorrent behaviour and our thoughts are with all those affected.
“The police have confirmed that the charges are not connected to the original complaint raised with the BBC in the summer of 2023, nevertheless in the interests of transparency we think it important to set out some points about events of the last year.
“In November 2023, whilst Mr Edwards was suspended, the BBC as his employer at the time was made aware in confidence that he had been arrested on suspicion of serious offences and released on bail whilst the police continued their investigation. At the time, no charges had been brought against Mr Edwards and the BBC had also been made aware of significant risk to his health.
“Today we have learnt of the conclusion of the police process in the details as presented to the court. If at any point during the period Mr Edwards was employed by the BBC he had been charged, the BBC had determined it would act immediately to dismiss him. In the end, at the point of charge he was no longer an employee of the BBC.
“During this period, in the usual way, the BBC has kept its corporate management of these issues separate from its independent editorial functions.
“We want to reiterate our shock at Mr Edwards’ actions and our thoughts remain with all those affected.”
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