THE BBC’s former highest-paid newsreader Huw Edwards admitted today to accessing indecent images of children as young as seven.

He was leading the corporation’s coverage of the late Queen’s platinum jubilee, her death and her funeral, as well as the coronation of King Charles when he committed the crimes.

Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard that an unnamed man he met online sent him 377 sexual images on WhatsApp between December 2020 and August 2021.

Of these 41 indecent images of children, seven of which were the most serious type.

The last, sent in August 2021, was of a film featuring a young boy, which the man told Edwards was “quite young looking.”

Once one of the most recognisable faces in British television, Edwards appeared nervous, fidgeting with his hands as Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring told him to return to the court for sentencing on September 16.

Speaking in Edwards’ defence, his barrister Philip Evans KC said: “Mr Edwards did not keep any images, did not send any to anyone else and did not and has not sought similar images from anywhere else.”

Mr Evans said the defendant had “both mental and physical” health issues.

The broadcaster was emotionless as he pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children.

He sat staring into the distance, with his head tilted slightly upwards and adjusted his tie as Ian Hope, prosecuting, laid out the case against him suggesting that a suspended sentence might be considered.

Claire Brinton, from the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “Accessing indecent images of underage people perpetuates the sexual exploitation of children, which has deep, long-lasting trauma on these victims.”

Edwards, who fronted BBC’s News At Ten for 20 years, resigned from the BBC earlier this year “on the basis of medical advice from his doctors” following unrelated allegations that he paid a young person for sexually explicit photos.

He was previously the BBC’s highest-paid newsreader, with a pay bracket of £475,000 to £479,999 for the year 2023/24.

An NSPCC spokeswoman said: “Online child sexual abuse offences can have a devastating impact on victims and we should be in no doubt about the seriousness of Edwards’ crimes. 

“It can be extremely traumatic for young people to know sexual images of themselves have been shared online. 

“We also need to see online platforms do much more to identify and disrupt child abuse in private messaging services in order to safeguard young people.”