Nicky Campbell, the television and radio presenter, has vowed he “will not rest” until justice is achieved for hundreds of boys abused in private schools in Scotland.
Speaking before the fourth episode of In Dark Corners, a BBC Radio 4 investigation into the schools, the 61-year-old broadcaster said that since he went public about the abuse he experienced and witnessed as a pupil at Edinburgh Academy, about 30 people had come forward to say they were abused as children by a male teacher who for legal reasons can be identified only as Edgar.
Despite being accused of inappropriate behaviour towards children, the teacher received a glowing reference and moved to Fettes College, the alma mater of Sir Tony Blair and the actress Tilda Swinton, where he continued to abuse boys until 1979, when he agreed to leave.
In March, the man, who now lives in a gated community in Cape Town, will appear in court in South Africa to fight extradition to Scotland to face charges of lewd, indecent and libidinous practices and behaviour.
The man is alleged to have sexually assaulted four boys at Edinburgh Academy between 1969 and 1973 and to have sexually assaulted three boys at Fettes College between 1974 and 1976.
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Last summer Campbell told listeners to his BBC Radio 5 Live show and Different podcast listeners that he witnessed the man sexually assault a pupil at Edinburgh Academy. Campbell also said he was himself sexually assaulted at the school by a second teacher, who is now dead, and physically assaulted by a third.
After a series of legal setbacks, Campbell told of his hope that the abuser, whom he has accused of being one of the country’s most prolific paedophiles, would be brought back to face justice.
He said: “When I was a ten-year-old boy, [I was] two or three feet away when my friend was being abused by Edgar in the changing rooms — he was known as an abuser. It was so normalised that we didn’t tell our parents. We were protecting them. In a way we didn’t know it was wrong, but we did know it was wrong.
“Spinning forward 51 years, part of me inside is really happy that at last someone has told the grown-ups, but part of me inside is still crushed that [Edgar is] still a free man.
“There has been an embarrassment of failures and mistakes over the years. He could have been brought to justice a long time ago, and so there is a lot of frustration over that, but I won’t rest until we get justice for the boys he abused.”
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Among those who contacted him about going public about the abuse was a former classmate who asked him to confirm Edgar’s identity.
As he did so, the friend burst into tears, not having told anyone other than his wife who the pervert was.
Campbell said: “A whole lot of people out there are tortured and tormented by this, and when they realise that it wasn’t just them, it can be life-changing.”
About 20 former teachers and staff at Edinburgh Academy, including the late Hamish Dawson, have been accused of abusing boys.
Edgar has admitted touching boys inappropriately when he was employed at Edinburgh Academy and Fettes College in the 1960s and 1970s but claims he is too old and frail to be extradited from South Africa.
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Edinburgh Academy has said it deeply regrets what happened in previous decades and apologised “wholeheartedly”, while Fettes has issued a “full and unreserved apology” to those who suffered abuse. Police Scotland has urged those affected to contact them.
In Dark Corners, presented by the journalist Alex Renton and to be broadcast at 8pm tomorrow, will explore the case against Edgar further. Renton was also sexually abused by a teacher and has highlighted abuse experienced by other boarding school pupils around the UK.
Laura Connor, who heads the historical abuse unit at Thompsons Solicitors, represents many of the survivors of Edgar at both Edinburgh Academy and Fettes College. Last year she secured a settlement of £450,000 from Fettes on behalf of one man.
She said: “The abuse Edgar perpetrated against the young people under his care was horrendous and its effects still live with them today.
“After many delays and disappointments it is imperative the Crown Office secures his return to Scotland to face a trial and answer for his crimes. The survivors who have shown great courage in highlighting his abuse and the abuse of other teachers at these schools deserve no less.”
