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Andy Coulson, the former News of the World editor jailed on phone hacking charges, is giving crisis management advice to Huw Edwards’s wife Vicky Flind over claims made in The Sun, i has learnt.
Coulson, David Cameron’s former Downing Street communications chief until the hacking scandal erupted, is understood to have assisted with the statement Ms Flind gave on Wednesday, which named her husband as the figure at the centre of the BBC scandal.
Coulson served five months of an 18-month prison term imposed in 2014 after he was convicted of conspiring to intercept voicemails at the now-defunct Sunday tabloid.
He has since set up a crisis management consultancy, using his own experience of a high-profile scandal to offer “discreet counsel” to public figures in trouble.
Flind, with whom BBC star Edwards has five children, won praise for the bravery of her public statement, in which she disclosed that her husband was suffering “serious mental health issues” and is now receiving in-patient hospital care.
Flind, a TV producer who has worked as an editor on ITV’s politics show Peston since 2018, knew Coulson and reached out to him for support, i understands.
An industry source said: “Andy has known Vicky for several years and he has plenty of expertise in this kind of crisis situation.”
Coulson offered his strategic advice and support to a figure whose family was under extreme strain, as the story raged about an “unnamed presenter”, i has learnt.
It is not known whether Coulson has spoken directly to Edwards, who has separately engaged lawyers to handle the allegations of inappropriate behaviour made against him.
Coulson declined to comment.
His involvement places him on the opposite side of a story pursued by his former employers, the publishers of Rupert Murdoch’s The Sun.
It is not known if Coulson has sought to influence The Sun’s coverage in any way.
Following Flind’s statement, The Sun said it would not publish further allegations about Edwards but hand the claims in its possession to the BBC to investigate.
Flind won widespread sympathy after releasing her 200-word statement, asking for privacy while her husband is treated in hospital for a fresh bout of depression.
She said she was speaking out “after what have been five extremely difficult days for our family. I am doing this primarily out of concern for his mental well-being and to protect our children.”
Labour MP Jess Phillips tweeted that Flind was “by some distance one of the nicest, kindest and most decent women I’ve had the privilege to work with”.
Quoting Phillips’s tweet, Robert Peston said: “I and everyone who works with me here would agree. It has been difficult to feel what she and her family have been going through.”
The Coulson Partners website states: “We believe that in almost every crisis there is opportunity.”
It adds: “In times of crisis you need guidance from people who know what it’s like to experience both highs and lows.”
Friends of Edwards believe he can come back from claims, including that that he paid a youngster £35,000 for explicit photos, and resume his career, when his mental health issues recede.
Former BBC colleague Jon Sopel questioned the extent of the coverage of the story on the BBC and in newspapers, since police had confirmed there was no criminal activity to investigate.
However the BBC is investigating claims of possible misconduct in the workplace, with younger staffers alleging they received “suggestive” messages from Edwards which made them feel uncomfortable. Flind said Edwards would address the claims when he has recovered.
Coulson was found guilty of conspiring to hack phones at the News of the World following an eight-month trial.
The judge singled out the former editor for the heaviest punishment, describing the hacking of the phone of murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler as “unforgiveable”.
Following his release, Coulson has spoken about confronting his mistakes and the strategies he deployed to cope in prison.
He has previously given PR advice to the Telegraph Media Group but Coulson now operates in the background, helping CEOs and leading public figures navigate crises without his role becoming public.
He also presents a podcast Crisis What Crisis, in which leading figures discuss life-changing experiences.
A junior reporter on the Basildon Echo, Coulson moved to The Sun working with Piers Morgan on the showbiz column Bizarre.
Appointed News of the World editor in 2003, he resigned four years later when the hacking scandal first erupted.
Coulson denied any knowledge of wrongdoing and went to work for David Cameron, advising the Conservative leader during the 2010 general election and taking up the Communications chief role in Downing Street.
Coulson resigned in 2011 saying the new wave of allegations that he was involved in illegal phone hacking when editor of the News of the World made it impossible for him to continue.
Rupert Murdoch closed the News of the World in July 2011 following the hacking revelations, with the loss of 200 jobs.
Coulson maintained his innocence during the subsequent trial. After his conviction, Cameron called hiring Coulson a “mistake” for which he was extremely sorry.
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