Jimmy Savile - A British Horror Show

[NotAGirl]

So much that could, should, must be said about this documentary

Something that really struck me was how people who ignored what was in front of them were happy to be interviewed and still didn’t take any responsibility for not saying anything and how heartbreaking it was to see one of the victims even knowing how protected he was blame herself for not saying anything when she was a frightened child.

The lady who told her account of being repeatedly molested in church was heartbreaking. Her attempts to avoid the abuse were so desperate.

I disliked him intensely as a child. I remember feeling bewildered about why they kept putting this horrible old creepy man on almost every show. he was literally everywhere. His jokes weren't funny and he was odd.
But the 60s,70s, and even 80,s were different times. Women were regularly groped and leered at. It was laughed off, even if the women had come forward they may have been believed, but no one would have cared, it just wasn't taken seriously. It was 'just life' and you had to put up with it.
It was so common, you only have to look at the TV programs of the time to see how sexist it was (Benny hill) and how women were expected to tolerate it and take it as a compliment.
The cult of celebrity protected him, he deliberately targeted young and vulnerable women who he knew couldn't stand up to him.

The woman who was the little girl in the church. What an amazing lady. Her story broke my heart.

But so much of it still happening today, you only need to look at the Girl Guides or the Edinburgh Rape Crisis Centre, to see what the future could hold for our young and vulnerable women and girls.

I looked up his background to try and understand how he became so very odd. He was the youngest of seven yet says he had no one to buy for at Xmas and no one to spend it with. Did he have no contact with his siblings and their families? Why were no school friends or teachers mentioned? Family friends? What sort of upbringing did he have? Something made him warped. From the interview with his mother it sounds like he was hit and felt unloved. All very strange. No mention of his father.
All this boasting about ‘girls’, yet it doesn’t sound like he had one normal relationship in his whole life.
It was a chilling programme.

I've just been watching this, it's utterly sickening.
Those poor children.
I'm of the age where I was a kid who used to love watching Jim'll Fix It.
It's hard to think how well loved he was back then, some next level hiding in plain sight.
I mean, he even tells you about who he is, in his so called '' jokes ''
Just wish he could have been found guilty when alive as it's disgusting he basically got away with it all.

Apparently he has a king relationship with a woman he kept completely quiet. She was introduced on rare occasions as his ‘friend’. She became pregnant and had an abortion without telling him as he said he didn’t want children.
Then one day he just dumped her with no explanation.

Long

I understand that some of the content will be triggering for me as a survivor of CSA but I wanted to ask if it is presented factually and respectfully, rather than as 'entertainment' before I attempt to view?

It is presented factually, but there's also a heartbreaking interview with someone who was abused by him as a child, where she recounts her experiences and she understandably gets very emotional, you could see the little child still inside
So if you have CSA experiences I can imagine that would be very triggering

@Pythian

I was struck by memories of how little awareness kids in the 80s (of which I was one) had of the possibility of sexual abuse by people we knew. It was all about stranger danger back then - and I only had the vaguest idea about what it was I was actually being warned about. I didn't really understand what molestation was or what I was supposed to do if it happened. And you were constantly being told to ignore your boundaries and let family members and friends of your parents touch you when you didn't really want them to. Even if it was just "give Uncle Dave a kiss" or "go and sit on Granddad's knee" you didn't feel like you were allowed to say no. It came as no surprise to me that Savile got away with it for so long, because that was the culture back then - you were made to feel like you were being "silly" or unkind if you didn't want to cuddle eccentric Uncle Jimmy, who was a bit creepy but it wasn't nice to say so.

Do any other 80s kids remember a Stranger Danger video; fronted by smiley cuddly cartoon-drawing kids TV presenter Rolf Harris? Because the baddies are strangers of course, not people you know, or off the telly.

Rolf Harris also did an educational video about not letting anyone touch you if it felt uncomfortable and it was ok to say no. Must've been the same campaign.

Jimmy Savile himself had a book aimed at children about stranger danger (briefly talked about in this documentary) which tells children about how strangers are dangerous, friends and family are safe, and the foreword to the book is signed off by “your friend, Jimmy Savile”.

I suppose it makes sense that these men would want to play up stranger danger while encouraging children to think of them as something akin to family friends.

Friends with the West Yorkshire Police, of course.

I just think are we supposed to buy the fact that this monster had close friendships with senior members of the British government, Royal Family and other institutions such as our NHS and the Security Services were not aware of what he was up to
Yeah, that bit seemed to be touched on but
completely glossed over
Interesting there was actually a reporter who asked a question basically along those lines.
Can't remember exact quote so paraphrasing here but basically ''so what's in it for them being such close friends?' '
His response was long silence and then a no comment

A guy I knew over 28 years ago was from Leeds & he said “everyone” in Leeds & further afield knew “ Savile was a filthy old pervert who had the police in his pocket so no one knew what to do about it with no proof.
I had said to him why didn’t he do something but he had no solid proof.

One part of the documentary which I found particularly chilling was when he produced artwork of his face drawn by a disabled patient at Leeds General. She had drawn his face all distorted with evil fangs and it was just disturbing. He said 'what have I done to you for you to draw me like that?' she lay there paralysed on the bed and coldly said 'everything'.

He immediately minimised it and said 'fun times here, always fun times'.
It left me cold.

VivaDixie very chilling and his arrogance asking her on camera like that knowing she wouldn’t dare go further than that as she knew he had the power and she didn’t

@NotAGirl yes I think that is what got to me the most

I was born in 73 and can remember vividly the culture of the time. There is no way she would have been believed. There was a phrase used by the real nest of vipers in my village growing up 'children should be seen and not heard '

Be said 'what have I done to you for you to draw me like that?' she lay there paralysed on the bed and coldly said 'everything'.
Yes, I picked up on that too
Just laughed away as if she meant it as a joke, when it's likely she didn't at all.

Something that really struck me was how people who ignored what was in front of them were happy to be interviewed and still didn’t take any responsibility for not saying anything

I was so struck by this aspect of it. There was so much deflecting and total avoidance of any blame. I didn't know what to make of the journalist/biographer. You can see she is torn because they had a genuine friendship, but her claims that there was no story to be found and she would have pursued it if there had been- really?? All I could think was that she either didn't want to find the story or she wasn't very good at her job...

but her claims that there was no story to be found and she would have pursued it if there had been- really?? All I could think was that she either didn't want to find the story or she wasn't very good at her job...
Did you see though where there was a journalist who had tried to pursue?
Can't remember the name but they said that they had tried to follow up rumours.
The trail just '' went cold '' though so to speak.
Nothing to be found.
No exes, no one willing to speak, anywhere.
What could she realistically have done?
People who did have suspicions were routinely shut down.

^Did you see though where there was a journalist who had tried to pursue?
Can't remember the name but they said that they had tried to follow up rumours.
The trail just '' went cold '' though so to speak.
Nothing to be found.
No exes, no one willing to speak, anywhere.
What could she realistically have done?
People who did have suspicions were routinely shut down.^

Yes this is true. I did miss parts of it as I was doing other things too while DH was watching, so I probably missed some context!

What the hell happened to the police who buried all the evidence and testimonies etc that were presented to them?

What was going on in those weekly meetings he had with them?

This documentary was unbelievably disturbing. The things he said to the actual camera.

How girls are never believed

Andbthat evil effing lawyer who defended him despite knowing the truth.

Who are these who enable the monster and how do they get away with it?

@greyinganddecaying

It was awful how much he got away with.

The little girl he abused in church, still seeming to blame herself for not shouting/telling her mum, many years later.

The bit in TOTP where he was obviously groping a young girl and she kept jumping away but he clearly didn't stop - all live and in front of the cameras for everyone to see.

Hiding in plain sight.

And the clip from Stoke Manderville where he asks a patient who doesn’t seem very happy to see him ‘what have I done to you?’ and the patient replies ‘everything’ - shuddering to think what might have been meant.

I didn’t realise that John Lydon had called out Saville's behaviour.