Exclusive: BBC set to edit disgraced Huw Edwards out of Doctor Who episode after guilty plea
Huw Edwards cameoed as a news commentator in the episode Fear Her in 2006, but it’s expected his voice will be edited out and replaced with another actor’s
Huw Edwards is set to be edited out of the 2006 Doctor Who episode he featured in.
The disgraced star, 62, had a cameo as a news commentator in the episode Fear Her, in which a girl is terrorised by a demonic version of her abusive late father.
Doctor Who is one of the BBC’s biggest brands when it comes to family viewing. Dad-of-five Edwards, who has reportedly split from his producer wife Vicky Flind, appeared as a fictional version of himself in the sci-fi show.
Bosses are expected to replace the words spoken by Edwards with another actor’s voice. One source said: “It’s going to be hard for the BBC to airbrush Huw out of news events he covered, but the Doctor Who episode should be straightforward.”
The story, starring David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor and Billie Piper as companion Rose Tyler, is set during the London 2012 Olympic Games which, at that point, were six years in the future. Edwards is heard many times throughout the episode, first telling viewers that the torch bearers were making their way up The Mall and later setting the scene for the opening ceremony, saying that “athletes from all over the world are streaming into the stadium”.
His big moment comes when 12-year-old Chloe Webber, the troubled girl at the centre of the story, makes everyone in the sports stadium disappear. He is heard declaring: “My God, what’s going on here? The crowd has just vanished, right in front of my eyes. It’s impossible. Bob, can we go to you in the box? Bob? Not you too?”
The former BBC presenter’s episode of Doctor Who is set to be edited
It turns out that the youngster has made 80,000 spectators and 13,000 athletes disappear with Edwards declaring: “This is a terrible turn of events.” Chloe then hears her late father threatening her from beyond the grave, saying: “Chloe, I’m coming to hurt you,” but her mother and Rose save the day and the missing people are all returned. The Doctor is then on hand to carry the flame into the stadium with Edwards declaring: “They’ve reappeared! It’s quite incredible. And a mystery man, we’ve no idea who he is, has picked up the flame. It’s more than heat and light, it’s hope and it’s courage and it’s love.”
The episode is available to watch on BBC iPlayer, along with all the other Doctor Who instalments since the reboot in 2005.
It comes as the BBC faces the headache of the disgraced news star having fronted many major live events in recent years, including Queen Elizabeth’s funeral. He was arrested for making indecent images of children in November but not charged until June – two months after he resigned from the BBC.
This week he pleaded guilty to the three charges relating to the different categories of pictures and videos contained on his WhatsApp messages. Last night the BBC had not responded to requests for comment.
