Dan Walker has thrown his support behind Huw Edwards, saying he is "clearly not in a good place" after Huw's wife Vicky Flind confirmed he was the previously-unnamed suspended BBC star.
Huw's wife shared a statement this evening, confirming the 61-year-old had been the BBC presenter facing allegations he had paid a teenager £35,000 for sexually explicit images over the course of three years from the age of 17.
In the statement, the presenter's wife also confirmed he was "suffering from serious mental health issues" after being treated for severe depression in recent years. Huw is currently receiving in-patient hospital care after suffering "another serious episode", the statement added.
After Vicky's statement confirming the news and speaking of Huw's mental health, stars reacted online. One of which was former BBC Breakfast star Dan Walker.
He wrote on Twitter: "This is an awful situation & will come as a big shock to many. Huw Edwards is clearly not in a good place at the moment and this must be terrible for his family. I just hope that whoever needs help - on all sides of this - gets the time, space & support they need to heal."
Dan's post on the social media platform was re-tweeted by Jeremy Vine. Though the BBC Radio 2 star is yet to speak out himself following Huw's wife's statement this evening.
It comes after the BBC presenter's wife Vicky shared a statement confirming her husband was the man facing recent allegations made by The Sun newspaper.
Vicky Flind, Huw's wife, released a statement today to say: "In light of the recent reporting regarding the ‘BBC Presenter’ I am making this statement on behalf of my husband Huw Edwards, after what have been five extremely difficult days for our family. I am doing this primarily out of concern for his mental well-being and to protect our children.
"Huw is suffering from serious mental health issues. As is well documented, he has been treated for severe depression in recent years. The events of the last few days have greatly worsened matters, he has suffered another serious episode and is now receiving in-patient hospital care where he’ll stay for the foreseeable future."
She added: "Once well enough to do so, he intends to respond to the stories that have been published. To be clear Huw was first told that there were allegations being made against him last Thursday. In the circumstances and given Huw’s condition I would like to ask that the privacy of my family and everyone else caught up in these upsetting events is respected. I know that Huw is deeply sorry that so many colleagues have been impacted by the recent media speculation. We hope this statement will bring that to an end."
The BBC also issued a statement today to confirm they would be continuing their own investigation.
A BBC spokesperson said: "We have seen the statement from the police confirming they have completed their assessment and are not taking further action. We’re grateful to them for completing this work at speed.
"The police had previously asked us to pause our fact finding investigations and we will now move forward with that work, ensuring due process and a thorough assessment of the facts, whilst continuing to be mindful of our duty of care to all involved."
Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Police said they have concluded their investigation and would not be taking any further action.
A police statement shared tonight read: "Detectives from the Met's Specialist Crime Command have now concluded their assessment and have determined there is no information to indicate that a criminal offence has been committed.
"In reaching this decision, they have spoken to a number of parties including the BBC and the alleged complainant and the alleged complainant’s family, both via another police force. There is no further police action. As such, the Met has advised the BBC it can continue with its internal investigation.
"We are aware of media reporting of further allegations against the same individual. No specific details or information about these allegations have been passed to us and therefore there is no police action at this time.
"Should evidence of criminality or safeguarding issues be identified at any point we would expect matters to be referred to the relevant police force."
*If you are struggling with mental health, you can speak to a trained advisor from Mind mental health charity on 0300 123 3393 or email info@mind.org.uk
