Former BBC presenter Huw Edwards has pleaded guilty to making indecent images of children.
The 62-year-old, who arrived at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in central London before 9.30am on Wednesday, admitted committing three offences between December 2020 and April 2022.
Dressed in a navy-blue suit and wearing dark sunglasses, Edwards arrived surrounded by a police escort to chaotic scenes, with protesters shouting as he made his way through the media scrum into the building.
The veteran broadcaster had 41 photographs on WhatsApp, including seven of the most serious type.
Edwards was emotionless after pleading guilty to the charges and sat staring into the distance, with his head tilted slightly upwards.
In a statement, the Metropolitan Police said he was arrested in November last year and charged on June 26.
Edwards, who was one of the BBC’s most prominent and highest-paid news anchors before he left the corporation in April on medical grounds, could receive a maximum penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment.
During his career, he fronted BBC’s News At Ten for 20 years and anchored coverage of major national events including announcing Queen Elizabeth II’s death on the BBC and presenting coverage of her funeral.
He was previously the BBC’s highest-paid newsreader, with a pay bracket of £475,000 to £479,999 for the year 2023/24 for 160 presenting days, BBC One news specials, election specials and other television programming, according to the corporation’s latest annual report.
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