Why BBC’s big hitter Huw is no longer a TV heavyweight
in the world of newsreading, he has always been a big presence.
But the BBC’s Huw Edwards is looking much leaner – after turning to boxing to help him get into shape.
The 56-year-old Welshman has lost three stone since putting on his gloves and has now won himself a gang of admirers.
Several fans noticed his new slimmeddown look during coverage of the royal wedding. One wrote on social media: ‘When did Huw Edwards turn into such a silver fox?’ Another asked: ‘Huw Edwards is looking fit. Such a crush on him,’ while other comments included: ‘You look fantastic! Please share your secret.’
The married father-of-five – whose nickname was ‘Huge Edwards’ in the days when he topped 16 stone – has previously said he had to diet because he is ‘one of those people who can put on weight simply by looking at a Twix’.
He once said: ‘in my job there’s the added danger of high-definition widescreen TV so i have to be careful. Luckily, i have never been a big drinker so this calorific nightmare is avoided but i eat sensibly and hit the gym.’
The news at Ten anchor now weighs around 13 stone, thanks to three training sessions a week with former British champion Clinton McKenzie.
Edwards has described the sessions, in which he trains with punchbags rather than sparring with a partner, as ‘Tough. Tough. Tough.’
But he also says he is ‘in much better shape physically and mentally’ and feels a ‘great sense of achievement’. ‘Only wish i’d taken it this seriously years ago,’ he added. in photographs that he has shared on social media, he can also be seen bench-pressing weights and lying on a gym mat on the floor with a medicine ball.
Rare glimpses of his legs, usually hidden behind a desk, have also set pulses racing. ‘Ooo you have legs... Rather nice ones too,’ commented one admirer on Twitter on a photo of the newsreader in shorts.
Edwards, whose salary was almost £600,000 until he agreed to a wage cut amid the gender pay gap battle at the BBC, is full of praise for his ‘killer trainer’ Mr McKenzie who he said had ‘pushed me further than ever’. The former professional boxer, 62, was the British and European light welterweight champion, and owns a fitness club near Edwards’s home in Dulwich, South-East London. Mr McKenzie represented Great Britain at the 1976 Montreal Olympics, where he won his first two fights before losing to eventual gold medal winner Sugar Ray Leonard.
Recording his weight loss in February, Edwards, who is married to TV producer Vicky Flind, posted: ‘A 90-minute training session today and on target for another 5kg (11lb) weight loss by Easter making 20kg (44lb) in all.’ Yesterday, Mr McKenzie tweeted: ‘it didn’t happen overnight! @huwbbc shed 3 stone – well done mate! As we know, many hours were put into it at my gym #sexsymbol.’