How’s about that then?
Did anyone ever know Jimmy Savile (apart from his mother)? Behind the hair, the cigar, the tracksuits, the jewelry, the charity work, and the colourful, now then now then public personality he was a peculiar old bird with perhaps some dark and dodgy corners and a lot of whispers about his private life. But I don’t want to go there because I have no idea and neither does anyone else either, for someone who was famous for so long he remains a bit of an enigma. But his place in British pop history is secure at least because he was there from the beginning on our televisions and radios and, like him or not, was the face presenting many of our happiest pop memories.
All the old TOTP presenters liked to have pretty young girls standing next to them but none more than Jimmy (who sometimes veered into dirty old man territory) and this must have taken some determined organizing.
PS: Don’t Frida and Agnetha look terrific in this?
Ian Hislop and Paul Merton were very rude and unpleasant to him when he was a guest on HIGNFY, and more or less called him a paedophile, mentioning a specific name. That was broadcast, so what the cut bits were like ….
We are still getting over the death of Sir Jimmy over here in Leeds, I can tell ye.
Indeed, I may join a candlelit vigil outside the Queens Hotel where his gold coffin lies in state -thankfully with the lid closed … with big cigar, wearing startling gold coloured jewelery and track suit. But then again, perhaps not. His funeral should attract ‘a galaxy of stars’ though.
All the has-beens are coming out of the woodwork now to recant their tale of being ‘Saviled’. (‘Diddy’ David Hamilton and the like). Been sad to see the ‘Smashy & Nicey’ merchants regaling us with cheap anecdotal tosh for a few quid.
Jimmy would visit to his old mum ‘The Duchess’ when she lived in the terraced houses opposite my schoolyard back in the 70s? Turning up in all the ‘gear’ in his big american car – he would unfailingly turn to wave – and receive some splendid Catholic abuse from us boys.
Given his persona, I can only assume that something profoundly phsycologically damaging happened to him as a kid – in order for him to turn out as he did. And I suspect the long-distance running was a stubborn reaction to his being told he may never walk again as a youngster.
I think everyone over the age of 30 in and around Leeds must’ve seen him jangling around many times at some point or another .. and called him a ‘silly sod’.
I suspect the film script of his life is quickly being typed up.
And I worry that a lot more ‘colourful’ stories may now surface – before his poor old bones are cold. He’d probably enjoyed some kind of journo editorial amnesty while alive – due to his enormous Charity efforts and friends in high places. (He’s not the only one).
Clunk-click Jimmy.
Other than the hospital wings and medical equipment, the kind of legacy he will leave remains to be seen. His statue is now being commissioned. Let’s hope it doesn’t end up shit-stained even before it’s unveiled.
I grew up in Leeds in the 70s and saw him around the place a few times. One encounter at Leeds General Infirmary stick in my memory. He was hanging out with the porters and was quite unlike the Jim of Jim’ll Fix It. He came across as a bit of a blagger – not surprising really, given he had been a flash-talking DJ at the Mecca ballroom. He had this conspiratorial “I-can’t-believe-I’m-getting-away-with-this” attitude that made me wonder whether the whole “Sir Jimmy” persona was a big piss take.
I know Warwick, the DOP, lovely guy. Wonder if he remembers this…