Creator of Huw Edwards drama reveals moment she knew she needed to 'tell the story'
Sam Anstiss has opened up on having to go "into the heart of darkness" to explore Huw Edwards' story.
Sam Anstiss knew she "had to tell the story" of Huw Edwards' crimes.
The creator and executive producer of Channel 5's new drama Power: The Downfall Of Huw Edwards has revealed how reading the disgraced former BBC newsreader's texts to a teenage motivated her to explore story on the small screen.
Speaking to media at a public screening, Sam said: “These text messages, I must admit, when I first saw them I felt like I was going into the heart of darkness.
“Because here in these messages was, in the most visceral, disturbing way, a very imbalanced relationship of power and, in an unflinching way, we had to tell the story behind those messages.
“They were so disturbing. It was, ‘I love you, but you kill me’, and they were the starting point, really, along with our relationship with The Sun.”
Edwards received a six-month sentenced suspended for two years and was placed on the sex offenders register for seven years in September 2024 after pleading guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children.
Sam was keen to delves into the lies of "the man who brought the truth into our front rooms, sometimes every night”.
She added: "It has been challenging to tell it. You do have to get out of bed in the morning and think, ‘Why am I doing this?' "
The two-part drama started on Tuesday (18.03.26) with Martin Clunes playing the former BBC News at Ten anchor.
The show is based on interviews with "key individuals" involved in Huw's story, but not the 64-year-old broadcaster himself.
Ben Frow, Channel 5’s chief content officer, said: “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.”
David Abraham, the founder and group chief executive of Wonderhood Studios, who are producing the show, added: “Drama is a medium with the power to uncover profound psychological truths, and we are incredibly grateful to our brave contributors in trusting us with their story.”
Edwards was charged with having a total of 41 photographs on a WhatsApp chat, six category A images - the most serious classification of indecent pictures - 12 category B pictures and 19 category C.
The offences were alleged to have taken place between 2020 and 2022 but are separate from other claims that were widely publicised and investigated in 2023.
A police spokesperson said: "These allegations did not form part of the matter which was considered by police in July 2023. They were investigated separately as a standalone case."
