When Savile became Vile

I am a 70’s child and grow up watching Jimmy Savile on the TV. He was a very popular and larger than life character who I saw as a successfully entertainer and charity worker. I respected him for his hard work and support of Stoke Mandeville hospital. Like millions of ours around the country, I was saddened when he passed away last year.


A few weeks ago we started to hear the rumours that he may not have been the man we thought he was. There were stories appearing in the press of the way he had a liking for underage Girls. I was of the opinion that it was probably some glory hunter trying to make some money by spreading unfounded rumours about a widely respected public figure, who could no longer defend himself. That sort of thing really annoys me and I refused to believe that any of these, quite frankly, sick rumours were true.

There was an ITV programme last week that purported to be an investigation into these horrible claims. I had no wish what so ever to watch this piece of alarmist television, as I believed it would be total fabrication. However, Mrs. T-E wanted me to record it and against my better judgement I ended watching it with her.

What I heard horrified and disgusted me. “Surely this can’t be true?” I told myself, but the realisty was that I was beginning to waver. As the week progressed, more people came forward to admit that they’d heard the rumours at the time and done nothing to stop it. It appears that they thought him “Untouchable” and such behaviour was common place at the BBC in the 1970’s.

Currently the Met Police are looking into these allegations, although I doubt there is now anything that can be done to put this right. The damage was been done long ago and Jimmy is no long here to confirm or deny anything. I suppose that if the truth is properly uncovered, his victims will finally have closure and be able to get on with their lives. There may even be others still alive who were guilty in aiding Jimmy in his sick activities and could still be brought to justice.

I would like to think that Jimmy Savile was not in fact a vile and disgusting child abuser, but somehow I fear that he mislead us all for a very long time.

Update:

Since I started writing this article, more victims have come forward and have made complaints to the Police. In the last few days, road signs, memorial plagues and even his grave stone have been removed. There is even rumours that his body may be removed from the cemetery in Scarborough that overlooks the sea.

Jimmy Savile’s memory has probably been soiled beyond repair and I feel extremely saddened that I and millions of others had been taken in by him for so many years. He wasn’t someone who deserved our respect and admiration. I doubt even Jim himself could fix this.


Regards



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