A friend of Huw Edwards has said he initially did not believe the claims about the BBC presenter because they were “against everything I know about the man”.
Andrew Billen, a feature writer for The Times, had lunch with Edwards last Thursday – hours before the newsreader was informed of the allegations against him.
Mr Billen told Sky News the 61-year-old TV personality was “in high spirits” during the meal and was “certainly not a man with a tremendous dark cloud hanging over him”.
Pic: BBC News
Discussing the allegations, he said: “Personally speaking I was incredibly shocked. It flew against everything I thought I knew about the man.
“I didn’t believe it partly because I didn’t want to believe it.”
Sky News understands before The Sun’s original story on Edwards was published, Newsnight journalists were looking into allegations against the presenter.
These soundings resulted in a story broadcast on Wednesday night, just after Edwards was named by his wife as the BBC star at the centre of the allegations.
Newsnight included claims from two current colleagues and one former BBC staff member they had received inappropriate messages from the presenter.
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Huw Edwards: Career at the BBC
‘An HR matter’
Asked about the further allegations, Mr Billen said: “I’d have thought this could well have been an HR matter, rather than a matter for an investigation.”
He added: “I was surprised last night that Newsnight continued to investigate, especially given the fact we know that he was in hospital… but I understand it from the BBC’s point of view.
“If they zealously go after other public figures who committed some kind of wrongdoing, to be seen to be independent, they have to do the same with their own.”
The BBC is currently conducting “fact-finding investigations” into allegations against the veteran broadcaster.
Edwards’ wife said in a statement her husband was “suffering from serious mental health issues” and was receiving in-patient hospital care.
The Metropolitan Police has said no criminal offence has been committed by Edwards and no further police action will be taken “at this time”, allowing an internal BBC investigation to resume.
Read more:
Huw Edwards scandal has left BBC battered, bruised and needing to regain public trust
What friends and colleagues have said about Huw Edwards
The Sun says it has dossier of ‘serious’ claims but has ‘no plans’ to publish
Was The Sun right to publish allegations about BBC presenter?
A way back for presenter?
Asked if there was a way back for Edwards, Mr Billen said: “I’d love to think he would be behind that desk again in a few weeks or months and presenting the election night, but I somehow doubt it.
“I really hope he will have a career in broadcasting beyond this… And if not that then maybe a job in academia.
“But he’s got to get past what is clearly a severe mental breakdown at the moment.”
He added: “You can be a very highly paid and very famous and very respected television presenter and be a vulnerable person too. I think we have found that poor Huw is very vulnerable.”
Mr Billen said he had interviewed Edwards twice and met with him socially for “two long lunches”. He said at their last lunch he and Edwards had “talked about going for a walk later this summer along the south Wales coast – which he absolutely adores”.
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Poll: Majority of public believe media spent too long on story
It comes as a poll for YouGov found the majority of people (60%) believe the media has spent too much time on the BBC story.
However, the poll suggested the public was split on whether the media was right or wrong to do the story at all.
