Newsreader Huw Edwards has resigned and left the BBC “on the basis of medical advice from his doctors”, the corporation has said.
His resignation follows allegations that he paid a young person for sexually explicit photos.
A statement from the BBC said: “Huw Edwards has today resigned and left the BBC.
“After 40 years of service, Huw has explained that his decision was made on the basis of medical advice from his doctors.
“The BBC has accepted his resignation, which it believes will allow all parties to move forward. We don’t believe it appropriate to comment further.”
Edwards has been absent from screens since the story first broke and his wife previously said he was receiving in-patient hospital care and suffering “serious mental health issues”.
He was the BBC’s highest-paid newsreader, with a pay bracket of £435,000-£439,999 in the year 2022/2023, according to the corporation’s most recent annual report.
This was up from £410,000-£414,000 the year before, and made him the fourth highest paid employee on the overall list.
The BBC has confirmed Edwards has not received a pay off.
Edwards had long been a fixture in the corporation’s coverage of major political and royal events.
He presented the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in 2012 and Platinum Jubilee in 2022, the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (now the Prince and Princess of Wales) in 2011, the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in 2018, and the funeral of Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, in 2021.
He announced Queen Elizabeth II’s death on the BBC and presented coverage of her funeral.
He also anchored the BBC’s broadcast of the King’s coronation last year.
The BBC News At Ten presenter was also the broadcaster’s voice at Trooping the Colour and the Festival of Remembrance, and took over election coverage from the long-serving David Dimbleby in 2019.
Questions will now arise about who will take his place to anchor the coverage of the forthcoming general election.
The first King’s Speech in November 2023 was anchored by TV and radio presenter Nicky Campbell.
The family of an unnamed young person originally complained to the BBC about Edwards in May 2023, and Edwards was publicly named by his wife as the BBC presenter at the centre of the allegations in July.
Edwards was suspended by the corporation but the Metropolitan Police said in July that no criminal offence had taken place.
