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Martin Clunes believes he truly captured the essence of former newsreader Huw Edwards in a new TV drama. The 64-year-old appears in Power: The Downfall of Huw Edwards, alongside Osian Morgan as a young man known only as "Ryan".

Channel 5's drama centres on Edwards' life, culminating in his arrest and its aftermath. Martin explains: "I was familiar with Huw Edwards, the newsreader, and how he presented himself when he was reading the news, reports the Mirror.

"But I've seen other actors make the mistake of just inhabiting that projected face of a famous person or politician, I knew that we needed the other side of him, too. Finding archive clips of Edwards away from the news was less easy, but I wanted to make sure I did. I noticed from looking at that archive that he was different when he wasn't reading the news, and I wanted to make that distinction. If you listen to his rhythms, he's far more Welsh when he's not news-reading.

"I didn't know the details, and I didn't really want to at the time, but for the purposes of this drama, I think they're extremely important. How does something like this happen, with someone who is right in front of our faces every single night?"

Edwards, 64, received a six-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, and was placed on the sex offenders register in 2024, after pleading guilty to creating indecent images of children.

The drama also centres on the real-life "Ryan", who encountered Edwards when he was 17. It is based on extensive factual research, including text messages between Edwards and "Ryan".

Discussing the role, Martin says: "I knew it would be a challenge on a number of levels. The script is always the most important thing, and I thought it was really powerful. It's always good when drama tackles difficult stories, especially when it does so as intelligently as this.

"Beyond the salacious curiosity around this story, I really thought there was another story worth telling, that of 'Ryan'. Obviously, the press and the media have focused on the fallen big man, Huw Edwards. But behind that, there's this lad and his family whose lives got turned upside down."

"It can be uncomfortable, but it's all part of the job, and you just have to go there," he states. "Sometimes it's more challenging when a role is vague and you can't anchor your performance on something. But we had transcripts of text messages between Huw Edwards and 'Ryan', and they do appear in the script, so we breathed life into them."

Martin has recently taken on darker roles, but says it is not part of any grand plan. He adds: "I never try to second-guess what the audience will think. I've played a murderer before, and I'm vile in Wuthering Heights, so this isn't my first dark role.

"I've always been lucky enough to balance light-hearted jobs with dramas in between. I'd play someone like Doc Martin again in a heartbeat. Sometimes with acting, you just have to jump off the cliff and hope you land well - you don't want everything to feel measured and calculated. I gave it my best shot, and I knew I was putting the performance into good hands."

Power: The Downfall of Huw Edwards, Channel 5, March 24.

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