Martin Clunes as Huw Edwards

Toetoe

I wonder if Edwards is experiencing abuse outside of his home , he may be free from a prison sentence but he will always be a prisoner . He may live in luxury but step out and reality will always hit him . Yes he did deserve prison we will never know why , no justice for the victims but I hope he sits in sufference

I can remember working with a man who was very popular and seemed completely normal, until he was suddenly suspended from work and the reason being gross misconduct. 3 months later he was charged with downloading child abuse images, was forced out of town and then was sentenced to 6 months in prison.
While this is 23 years ago and he probably has started a new life, there is no way he can return to his home town and will be constantly watching his back.

And probably still watching child abuse images according to rehabilitation and reoffending figures 😢.

TheSunRisesInTheEast

And probably still watching child abuse images according to rehabilitation and reoffending figures 😢.

In addition to his suspended prison sentence, Edwards was sentenced to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and will be on the Sex Offenders register for 7 years. Therefore, the probation service and police can look at his phone or other devices at any time and if he breaches the terms and conditions, he will be arrested.

MollyNew

TheSunRisesInTheEast

And probably still watching child abuse images according to rehabilitation and reoffending figures 😢.

In addition to his suspended prison sentence, Edwards was sentenced to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order and will be on the Sex Offenders register for 7 years. Therefore, the probation service and police can look at his phone or other devices at any time and if he breaches the terms and conditions, he will be arrested.

the probation service and police can look at his phone or other devices at any time

How is that done - do they go to the individual's home to check their devices, or can they do that remotely? Of course, there is the dark-web - but I think you need a special browser for that which, I assume, would raise some red flags if it was detected on a device.

Regarding the Sex Offender's Register, I do wonder if some of those on it should in fact ever come off it. There's a difference, for example, between (say) an older man who has an ill-fated 'love affair' with a teenager and who, to that date, has a clean record, and individuals like Edwards who prey on younger men transactionally and - much worse - store category A images of the SA of children as young as 7. The former might be genuinely remorseful about his lustful stupidity - but can those who are turned on by images of children sexualised for their gratification be rehabilitated? I mean, is there a point where they are in fact 'cured' and no longer a danger?
Don't shoot me, I'm not suggesting I am right, I'm simply questioning.

I've been asking the same question Dickens. I'm sorry but I don't believe that a man who enjoys looking at images of children being sexually abused would ever lose that urge. Some may learn self control to not look but I don't believe the urge disappears, and therefore they remain a potential danger.

My career was in the Criminal Justice System, so I have some knowledge of this subject. I'm not going to say what my job was.

The Police can visit him at home at any time and look at his browsing history and he will probably have been instructed not to delete any of it.

Some people, depending on their offending history and risk factors, can be on the Sex Offenders Register for life.

On the BBC News website there is an article "Four key takeaways from Huw Edwards' sentencing" which gives more detail about the sentencing decision by the Judge and Edwards' offending history. It also gives some information about Sentencing Guidelines , which all Judges and Magistrates have to consult before sentencing a convicted offender.

Rosie51

I've been asking the same question Dickens. I'm sorry but I don't believe that a man who enjoys looking at images of children being sexually abused would ever lose that urge. Some may learn self control to not look but I don't believe the urge disappears, and therefore they remain a potential danger.

Some time ago now I read the confessions of a man who had been convicted for similar offences to those of HE. In fact, it was a very long time ago so cannot remember where I picked up the article, I do know that it was not a tabloid article, it was very in-depth, not a 'click-bait' piece. Briefly, this particular individual said he fought almost every day with his urge and, with the help of therapy, had developed strategies to deal with it. The man appeared quite insightful, and determined to 'overcome' his obsession but he admitted it was very difficult to rid himself of these urges and that he consciously had to think of himself as 'not being that man' every minute of every day. That was the gist of the article, basically.

I wonder just how many of these offenders are like him though, IYSWIM?

TheSunRisesInTheEast

And probably still watching child abuse images according to rehabilitation and reoffending figures 😢.

My post was actually in reply to the post above it, referring to an old workmate of Cumbrianmale56. I don't think offenders ever get over their disgusting urges, and only chemical castration would stop the physical abuse, of course the viewing of paedophilic images is another matter, and you would have to rely on the police monitoring the perpetrators for life, I'm not sure how effective that is 🤷.

MollyNew

My career was in the Criminal Justice System, so I have some knowledge of this subject. I'm not going to say what my job was.

The Police can visit him at home at any time and look at his browsing history and he will probably have been instructed not to delete any of it.

Some people, depending on their offending history and risk factors, can be on the Sex Offenders Register for life.

On the BBC News website there is an article "Four key takeaways from Huw Edwards' sentencing" which gives more detail about the sentencing decision by the Judge and Edwards' offending history. It also gives some information about Sentencing Guidelines , which all Judges and Magistrates have to consult before sentencing a convicted offender.

Thank you, it's good to have factual information.

The Police can visit him at home at any time and look at his browsing history and he will probably have been instructed not to delete any of it.

If you delete your browsing history, can it not be retrieved from the hard-drive? I'm not up to speed with these technical matters...

If not, than any offender could simply delete their history and no-one would know that they had.

Most victims of abuse come from rotten homes.

They can get information on your browinging history etc now

Browsing history
I hate my phone 😓

In discussions with a group of friends we were talking about about Edwards and the discussion turned to other perpetrators we had heard of I know of three. One was a photographer who befriended a primary school and invited groups to his holiday cottage another used take a friend to a charity committee meeting they were both on. They were both tried and went down for 16 and eighteen years. The third, as far as I know was never caught He was a previous owner of a property some ten years before we owned it The doors were steel plated and the windows had steel shutters The locals told us he was a head teacher of a Church of England school. It was his holiday home and he used to bring boys out from his school. It was in a beautiful and isolated spot. Need I say more !!

BlueBelle

I’m a bit on the line here, not about the abuse but the programme itself, I watched it but I didn’t find it comfortable viewing because I m not sure how I feel about it being made into ‘entertainment’ while his 5 children are still out there having to endure the results of his behaviour and media attention It felt voyeuristic.
Why was he not criminally convicted, two police forces Met and Welsh didn’t criminally charge him. I don’t understand why they didn’t or have I got that wrong
He certainly came across as a throughly dislikable, power abuser and sexual predator , but only one side was shown
This post is not meant to support him in any way what so ever I m just not sure it should have been made
Yes Martin Clunes played the part well, if that is how Huw Edwards really is I suppose it felt unbalanced to me.

Please don’t think I m defending him I m not. It’s the programme itself I felt uncomfortable with

I agree with you.

I too agree

If we were talking about ‘Huw Edwards The Musical’ or something similar I would understand the ‘entertainment’ comments better; but tv also informs and educates, and that’s what I got from watching it.

I now understand more about what happened, which was not discussed at the time. There were a lot of accusations against ‘Ryan’, and a lot of other celebrities accused of being the perpetrator of the abuse, but the victim was protected (rightly) and the story wasn’t told.

As I’ve said, I think the programme was flawed - it is too long, and IMO doesn’t tell the whole story. But it isn’t entertainment in a meaningful sense.

The fact of this programme has opened debate and increased awareness .... we are here talking about it.
I belive that awareness and debate to be a good thing countering the secrecy that surrounds this, leading to disbelief and then the disinclination of authorities to take accusations seriously and take action.

How much training magistrates and judges receive in relation to child sexual abuse is clearly insufficient if someone downloading category A images recieved a suspended sentence. One might argue that his mental health problems were taken into account, but in reality a large proportion of the prison population has mental health or addiction problems which do not prevent them receiving a custodial sentence.

It seems to be generally accepted that sexuality is something we are born with. Being gay is thankfully, no longer a crime in the uk.

Sexual attraction to children is a perversion that is seen and treated rightly as a criminal offence. Therapy is available. In the course of my work, I met one man who actively sought help because he did not want to act on his feelings. How successful therapy is remains unclear. For men who are brave enough to seek support, there may be hope. For men who justify their behaviour, it’s unlikely. Paedophiles can describe five year olds as seductive. They can claim to be in a love affair with an eight year old boy.

Research on success is limited,

Huw Edwards will never be seen on television again. No one will want to work with him and his career, which was one of the most successful in television, is over.

I do feel for Huw Edwards children and his wife and family, do not think it should have been made.

My husband and I have been together for 37 years, married for 36.
If he had been engaging with young boys for at least 20 of those years, I’m certain I would know about it.

Sorry. Realise that won’t necessarily land well. But I just would.

Basgetti

Sorry. Realise that won’t necessarily land well. But I just would.

You may well do, but these types of offenders, male or female, are notoriously secretive and manipulative. That's how they get away with it for so long. Many partners would be oblivious because there are often no signs.

MollyNew

Basgetti

Sorry. Realise that won’t necessarily land well. But I just would.

You may well do, but these types of offenders, male or female, are notoriously secretive and manipulative. That's how they get away with it for so long. Many partners would be oblivious because there are often no signs.

They won't have been living in a small house. His ome is more like a small mansion.
He probably had his large study where he'd shut himself away to do 'essential work'.

I don't think we should even begin to blame his wife and children.

Quote Basgetti Wed 01-Apr-26 22:17:15
My husband and I have been together for 37 years, married for 36.
If he had been engaging with young boys for at least 20 of those years, I’m certain I would know about it.

HE was engaging with young boys for at least 20 years?
Sorry. Realise that won’t necessarily land well. But I just would