Huw Edwards, the former BBC newsreader convicted of child image offenses , has released his first published poem via Substack. Written for the 2026 National Eisteddfod, the work explores his grief for his father and his own public disgrace.
The 2026 National Eisteddfod and the 'Adnabod' theme
Huw Edwards has entered the prestigious Crown competition of the 2026 National Eisteddfod with a poem inspired by the theme Adnabod, which translates to "Knowing." According to the report, the poem was originally composed in Welsh and serves as a vehicle for the 64-year-old former presenter to reflect on his identity following a high-profile fall from grace.
The work is characterized by a shifting sense of self, as Huw Edwards describes himself through a series of evolving personas. He transitions from being a "wayward son" to a "defenceless son," and eventually an "accursed son," before concluding the piece as a "repentant" and "self-destructive" child seeking forgiveness.
Hywel Teifi Edwards and the 'wayward son' narrative
A central pillar of the poem is a tribute to Hywel Teifi Edwards, a celebrated academic and the father of Huw Edwards, who passed away in January 2010.. The poem suggests that the personal reconciliation between the son and father outweighs the loss of public reputation, ending with the claim that in death, Hywel Teifi Edwards "opened [his] heart."
However, the publication of the poem also serves as a critique of the press. As the source reported, Huw Edwards claims that the media "willfully misrepresented" the relationship between him and his father during the height of the 2024 scandal, suggesting that the poem is an attempt to correct a narrative he believes was distorted by outside observers .
The 41 indecent images and the suspended sentence
The literary reflections of Huw Edwards stand in stark contrast to the legal realities of his 2024 conviction. In July 2024, Huw Edwards appeared at Westminster Magistrates Court and pleaded guilty to receiving 41 indecent images of children from a man named Alex Williams. These images included two sexual videos of a boy under the age of nine.
The severity of the material was detailed in court, with the images categorized by their level of offense: seven were classified as Category A (the most serious), 12 as Category B, and 22 as Category C. Following these admissios, Huw Edwards was handed a six-month suspended jail sentence, a legal outcome that preceded his current attempt to engage with the public through poetry.
A 25-year struggle with mental illness
In an exclusive statement to the Daily Mail, Huw Edwards linked his behavior to a long-term battle with his psychological health, stating he has struggled with persistent mental illness for 25 years. He argues that while this condition cannot excuse his criminality, it provides a necessary explanation for the "downward spiral" that led to his crimes.
This claim introduces a tension between the legal definition of his actions and his personal interpretation of them. By framing his crimes as the result of a managed condition that eventually collapsed, Huw Edwards is attempting to shift the public's perception of him from a calculated offender to a man broken by illness.
The Substack publication and the calls for removal
The decision to upload the poem to Substack has not been without controversy, as the report notes there have been calls for the content to be removed. This raises a significant open question regarding whether the 2026 National Eisteddfod will permit a convicted offender to compete for the Crown, one of the most prestigious honors in Welsh culture.
Furthermore, it remains unclear who specifically is leading the calls for the removal of his Substack posts and whether the platform's terms of service regarding the conduct of its authors will be invoked. While Huw Edwards seeks to use the platform to "tell his side of the story," the reaction from the public and cultural institutions suggests a deep divide over whether a poet's "dark condition" can ever offset the nature of his crimes.
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