The first look at Martin Clunes as disgraced BBC presenter Huw Edwards in a game-changing new TV drama for Channel 5 has been unveiled.
Doc Martin and Wuthering Heights actor Clunes stars in the two-part series, titled Power: The Downfall of Huw Edwards, which will explore how British television’s most recognisable figures became embroiled in a major scandal at the public broadcaster by blending scripted scenes with real-life interviews.
Edwards’s career ended abruptly in July 2024, when he pleaded guilty to making indecent images of children. The new show will look into the former newsreader’s “double life”, incorporating conversations with those who initially reported the story.
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Ben Frow, chief content officer at Channel 5, called it “a first for the channel”.
He continued: “This is an important and shocking story of how a man in a position of power and trust betrayed that status.
”By gaining exclusive access to the key individuals involved and those who investigated the story, we explore the human cost behind the headlines.”
Edwards’ downfall began in July 2023 following a report by The Sun alleging a “top BBC Star” had paid a teenager for sexual pictures. Days later, his wife publicly named him as the presenter at the centre of the allegations, leading to his resignation in April on medical advice. He was subsequently charged in June 2024 after a Metropolitan Police investigation.
A month later, Edwards admitted guilt to making indecent images of children, confirming he possessed 41 photographs on WhatsApp, including seven classified as the most serious type.
The BBC said it was told in November 2023, when Edwards was suspended, that he had been arrested on “suspicion of serious offences”, five months before he resigned from the corporation in April.
In a statement, the broadcaster claimed Edwards would have been dismissed “immediately” if he was charged while still an employee at the corporation.
Power: The Downfall of Huw Edwards will air soon on Channel 5.
Additional reporting by Agencies
