Predator: Jimmy Savile got away with depraved attacks on vulnerable victims over decades at the BBC

The BBC was accused of a whitewash yesterday after a £6.5million inquiry into the Jimmy Savile scandal cleared bosses of any blame.

In her long-awaited report, Dame Janet Smith said that although she had spoken to 117 people at the corporation who had heard rumours of the DJ’s paedophile behaviour, that did not mean senior managers must have known.

Liz Dux, a lawyer for some of victims, condemned the inquiry as an ‘expensive whitewash’.

The BBC was left humiliated after being forced to admit that its culture masked a ‘monstrous’ campaign of sex abuse by Savile and by TV presenter Stuart Hall.

Its director general, Tony Hall, told victims: ‘A serial rapist and a predatory sexual abuser both hid in plain sight at the BBC for decades. The BBC failed you when it should have protected you.’

Lord Hall’s mea culpa came as Dame Janet published her inquiry into how Savile, who presented Jim’ll Fix It and Top Of The Pops, was able to get away with his crimes.

She sparked controversy by insisting that there was no evidence BBC bosses knew about his ‘grotesque’ activities.

‘I simply could not draw the inference from the fact that some people had heard rumours that the senior managers had,’ Dame Janet said.

‘I am sorry if the victims do not have confidence in my conclusions [but] you just simply cannot make that leap from “People have heard rumours ergo the BBC must have known”. It simply doesn’t work.’

Heinous crimes: Savile molested 72 victims at the BBC and was still abusing women in 2006 when the corporation brought him back to host the last ever Top of the Pops aged 79 (pictured after the final show)

Savile's reign of abuse dates back to 1959 when he raped a 13-year-old girl, before attacks followed 'in the corridors and dressing rooms of every BBC premises'. He is pictured during the Top of the Pops show in 2006

Revelations: Savile's most recent attack happened in 2006 after filming for Top of the Pops (left), it has emerged, as the review by Dame Janet Smith (right, at a press conference yesterday morning) was published

In a leaked draft of her report, published last month, Dame Janet had warned another ‘predatory child abuser could be lurking undiscovered in the BBC even today’.

But in the final version, she concluded more vaguely that ‘I don’t think there is any organisation’ that could be completely confident it does not harbour a child abuser.

She insisted ‘nobody put me under any pressure’ to change the wording but admitted the culture of fear that silenced so many victims persists today.

Yesterday sacked Radio 2 DJ Tony Blackburn threatened to sue the BBC, for making him a ‘scapegoat’ and letting him be ‘hung out to dry’ in the wake of the inquiry.

Dame Janet’s report rejected the 73-year-old’s testimony that he was not quizzed by BBC bosses in 1971 after a 15-year-old dancer claimed that he molested her.

Shocking: BBC bosses missed five opportunities to snare 'King Jimmy' Savile as he molested 72 victims as young as eight over five decades in every corridor he worked, a long-awaited report revealed yesterday

'SOCIETY OWES YOU A GREAT DEBT': DAME JANET THANKS VICTIMS OF SAVILE AND HALL Dame Janet thanked Savile and Hall's victims for 'your contribution and your courage'. She said: 'Some of you told me and Dame Linda that you blame yourselves for what happened and for not reporting it at the time. You are not to blame and your reasons for not reporting it are wholly understandable. 'Society owes you a great debt. Your legacy is that you have helped to convince us all of the importance of ensuring that young and vulnerable people have the confidence to report abuse, and when they do so their voices will be heard and treated with the same respect as those with power in our society. 'I think that is a legacy of which you can be justifiably proud.' Advertisement

The teenager later committed suicide. Lord Hall said the version of events Blackburn gave to the review panel ‘fell short of the standards of evidence that such an inquiry demanded’.

TOP OF THE POPS 'MORAL DANGER' Top Of The Pops was a ‘moral danger’ to young girls, Dame Janet says. In a damning verdict on one of the BBC’s most successful shows, she said youngsters found themselves in the company of older men and were ‘liable’ to be involved in sexual activity. Finale: Dave Lee Travis, Janice Long and Savile BBC bosses wanted young people who were good looking, fashionably dressed and good dancers to attend recordings of the show, which started in 1964 with Savile one of the regular presenters. But managers found it impossible to police the age limit of no under-15s, and up to 100 teenagers determined to get on screen or meet their pop idols would get in to BBC Television Centre. After the filming, some were taken to stars’ dressing rooms which were regarded as ‘havens’ where presenters could molest them. Some of Savile’s victims were sexually abused in the studio itself, at least once while live on air. Dame Janet said that during the 1960s, 70s and 80s, ‘the BBC should have realised that the way Top Of The Pops was run meant that young girls were at risk of moral danger’. TOTP ‘effectively provided a “picking up” opportunity’ for warped stars – and there were several warninjg signs, she said. The first concerned Harry Goodwin, the programme’s stills photographer from 1964, who allegedly took pornographic photos of girls in his dressing room after the show. The second was in 1971 when Vera McAlpine telephoned the BBC to complain her daughter Claire, then 15, had been seduced by a celebrity in his flat after she had attended TOTP as a member of the audience. The BBC carried out an investigation, but in a ‘wholly unsatisfactory’ way. The third was also in 1971, when the News Of The World revealed sordid behind-the-scenes activities. Dame Janet said: ‘No one within the BBC seemed to consider the possibility that the News Of The World articles might have lifted the lid on the true state of affairs at Top Of The Pops.’ In 2006, during the last ever TOTP, BBC presenter Mark Lawson rescued a woman from Savile’s clutches. Savile, then 79, was one of three star DJs invited back. He grabbed her round the waist and rubbed himself against her, the report says. Lawson saw what was happening and got between Savile and the woman. She later thanked him but did not wish to report the incident. It came to light only in 2012, when the Savile scandal broke and Lawson reported it to the BBC Investigations Unit. Advertisement

Dame Janet’s three-year review found:

Savile abused at least 72 victims at the BBC, including 34 girls and boys under 16. One was aged eight. Eight victims, including a ten-year-old, were raped. Two were attacked while he wore a Womble costume

The BBC missed ‘clear’ opportunities to uncover his misconduct, showing more concern for its own reputation than for the victims

Incidents of abuse were reported to BBC staff, but victims were dismissed as ‘silly’ and brushed aside

Staff may have helped ‘procure’ women to be abused.

The 1,000-page report painted a picture of a ‘bullying’ culture at the BBC where ‘virtually unassailable’ presenters were treated with ‘kid gloves’, and staff were afraid to speak out for fear of losing their jobs.

Abuse victims who complained were often told not to make a fuss. One of Savile’s victims was advised, ‘Keep your mouth shut, he’s a VIP’.

‘The BBC regarded these girls as something of a nuisance,’ Dame Janet said.

Yesterday, Lord Hall admitted that Savile’s VIP status was a problem of the BBC’s own making.

‘Savile used his celebrity to promise access to excitement and fun and then grotesquely exploited it… We, the BBC, did that. Jimmy Savile committed many crimes in many places. But, uniquely, it was the BBC that made him famous. We made him a VIP,’ he said.

Savile and Stuart Hall – the subject of a separate damning report yesterday – were allowed to pick off their targets almost unchecked.

Savile’s producer on his Radio 1 show, Ted Beston, was ‘prepared to act as a provider’, while the DJ used his fame to ‘gratify himself sexually’ in virtually every BBC building, ‘whenever the opportunity arose’, Dame Janet said.

Her report – which spans four volumes – is a shocking catalogue of abuse by BBC stars, and subsequent cover ups.

It comes more than three years after the Savile scandal sparked the biggest crisis in the BBC’s history.

Savile died in October 2011, two days before his 85th birthday. He had been knighted in 1990 for his charity work and although known to be eccentric was respected.

But a year after his death allegations began to emerge that he had used his work for the BBC and for the NHS to sexually abuse children and young women. The revelations led to Dame Janet’s inquiry but victims criticised her findings as a whitewash and a waste of time.

Miss Dux, a lawyer at the firm representing 168 victims of Savile at the BBC and NHS, said: ‘Despite millions having been spent on the inquiry, my clients will feel let down that the truth has still not been unearthed.’

Sylvia Edwards, 58, who was groped live on Top Of The Pops by Savile in 1976 when she was 18, said: ‘It’s on video, for God’s sake. The report is diabolical, a waste of time. How could the BBC not have known? I think it’s atrocious. How high do they have to be before they can say they didn’t know about it?’

Lord Hall said he took ‘no satisfaction’ from Dame Janet’s findings. ‘It seems to me that the BBC could have known. Just as powerful as the accusation, “You knew” is the question, “How could you not have known?” he said.

He vowed to crack down on the BBC’s ‘culture of deference’, and do more to make staff aware that they can raise the alarm without negative consequences.

It would appear that the broadcaster has a mammoth task on its hands. Dame Janet said that the ‘atmosphere of fear’ that left Savile free to abuse his victims still persists.

Many staff spoke to the review only if they were guaranteed anonymity to protect their careers.

BBC FAILED VICTIMS, THE PUBLIC AND AUDIENCES BY TURNING A BLIND EYE TO APPALLING ABUSE, SAYS TRUST CHAIRMAN The BBC failed the victims of Jimmy Savile and Stuart Hall by turning a blind eye to the abuse they suffered, BBC Trust chairman Rona Fairhead has said. In a statement, Ms Fairhead said she is 'appalled' by what happened and said everything will be done to ensure that history does not repeat itself. 'I am saddened and appalled by the events recounted here and in a few moments I want to address how we will aim to ensure we never allow them to happen again. 'But our primary thoughts must be with the victims - the survivors of the abuse perpetrated by Jimmy Savile and Stuart Hall. Today's reports lay bare the full horror of what happened to them. Those experiences can never be erased. 'No one reading the reports can be in any doubt that the BBC failed them. It failed not just them, but the public, its audiences and its staff. 'It turned a blind eye where it should have shone a light. And it did not protect those who put their trust in it. 'On behalf of the BBC and its staff past and present, I want to apologise to the survivors for all they have suffered. 'I also want to commit to them directly that we will ensure the BBC does everything it possibly can to prevent any such events in the future,' she said. Advertisement

Damning: Dame Janet's long-awaited review (pictured left) found there was a culture of 'reverence and fear' towards celebrities at the corporation. A parallel inquiry also published yesterday into Stuart Hall (pictured yesterday) found BBC managers were aware – or should have been – that he was abusing girls

FIVE HIGH RANKING BBC MANAGERS WHO SHOULD HAVE KNOWN ABOUT SAVILE AND HALL'S ABUSE Dame Janet highlighted several individuals who either knew about the abuse carried out by Jimmy Savile and Stuart Hall, suspected it, or should have known, but failed to report it or take proper action. Ted Beston, Savile's Radio 1 producer. Dame Janet said Savile's Radio 1 producer Ted Beston (pictured) was a 'provider' of young women for Savile, whom he 'admired', and that he knew the presenter had casual sex with teenage girls Dame Janet said Mr Beston was a 'provider' of young women for Savile, whom he 'admired', and that he knew the presenter had casual sex with teenage girls. She highlighted a case in late 1978 or early 1979 when Mr Beston invited a 19-year-old waitress he knew to meet Savile at a drinks party. Once there the presenter took her off to a curtained area where he forcibly kissed and groped her. The teenager, referred to as C33, ran out of the area and told Mr Beston what had happened, but he just treated her 'as if she was being silly', the report found. Mr Beston denied knowing that Savile had sex with under-age girls, and, while Dame Janet said there is 'some evidence' Mr Beston did know about this, she could not be sure he did. Dame Janet said: 'I found that he knew that Savile would have casual sex with teenage girls as and when he could get it. 'Although he denied it, I'm satisfied that Mr Beston must have realised from their appearance that some of the girls might well be under age. He admired Savile and I don't think it ever crossed his mind that he should have reported him. But he should have done.' Canon Colin Semper, who worked as a producer on Speakeasy and helped write God'll Fix It, and eventually became head of religious programmes at the BBC. Dame Janet went out of her way to praise the honesty of the evidence Canon Semper gave her, and said the failure to stop Savile's behaviour had clearly weighed heavily on his mind. But she said Canon Semper should have reported his suspicions about Savile to his superiors at the BBC. The report states: 'I accept that Canon Semper did not 'know' that Savile had sex with under-age girls in the sense of ever seeing it happen, but he clearly did 'think' that Savile had casual sex with a lot of girls, some of whom might have been under age. 'Canon Semper did not make any report to his managers. I have concluded that he ought to have discussed his concerns with a manager.' Douglas Muggeridge, controller of Radio 1 and 2 in 1973. He has since died and so was not interviewed by Dame Janet. Mr Muggeridge launched two investigations into Savile in 1973 after hearing rumours about his sexual impropriety, but neither of these were pursued thoroughly and they failed to identify Savile's abuse or stop it. The first involved a meeting between Savile, Derek Chinnery, then head of programmes for Radio 1, and Doreen Davies, an executive producer, at which Savile's denial appear to be taken at face value. In 1973 Douglas Muggeridge (left), controller of Radio 1 and 2, 'heard rumours of Savile's sexual impropriety'. He held meeting between Savile, Derek Chinnery (right), then head of programmes for Radio 1, and producer Doreen Davies, where Savile denied there was any truth to the rumours and the BBC bosses believed him BBC publicity officer Rodney Collins heard of rumours about Savile from the press, but no hard evidence was found and the probe was abandoned. In a scathing assessment of these investigations, Dame Janet said: 'It appears to me that the main concern which prompted his inquiries was the risk of damage to the BBC's reputation, rather than the welfare of any girls who might be sexually involved with Savile. 'It seemed likely that, as a result of his inquiries, he believed the rumours to be untrue. Even so, I am surprised that he should have closed the book quite as completely as he appears to have done.' He should have shared his concerns with senior colleagues and kept an eye and ear on Savile, she said. Raymond Colley, the regional television manager at BBC Manchester from 1970 to 1986. Mr Colley, one of freelancer Stuart Hall's bosses, gave the It's A Knockout star a talking to shortly after taking up his post about the star's conduct. In her report Dame Janet said this suggested rumours of his sexual acts were known even then. She criticised Mr Colley for failing to follow up this warning by checking up on the star's behaviour at the BBC. She said that while there was no evidence Mr Colley had known about Hall's activities, he should have done, saying: 'He overestimated his own authority and he underestimated Stuart Hall's duplicity. Had Mr Colley kept a watch on Hall it is likely he would have been stopped.' Tom German, regional news editor at the BBC in Manchester in the 1970s. Mr German, who has since died, was 'probably aware' Hall was having sex on BBC premises, but had not known any underage girls were involved, Dame Janet said. She added: 'If he was it seems to me he should have shared his concerns with Mr Colley. He did not do so and this may well have been the fifth missed opportunity.' Advertisement

DAILY MAIL COMMENT: This report is an expensive whitewash that fails Savile’s victims all over again

After spending £6.5million of licence fee payers’ money, the BBC yesterday published its 1,000-page report into how the grotesque paedophile Jimmy Savile was able to use Corporation premises across the country as his hunting ground.

Truly, it makes for the most appalling reading.

Dame Janet Smith identified 72 victims – including eight who were raped – as BBC staff turned a blind eye to Savile’s ‘monstrous’ abuse.

Failure to act: Dame Janet (pictured at a press conference yesterday morning) said girls who dared to complain about being sexually assaulted were regarded as 'a nuisance' and their claims not properly dealt with

'Sorry': BBC Director General Tony Hall (pictured at the press conference) apologised to the victims of Savile and Hall, saying: 'I am deeply sorry for the hurt caused to each of you. We let you down and we know it'

Horrifyingly, the youngest victim was only eight years old.

Over the course of four decades, an incredible 117 BBC staff heard ‘rumours’ about the DJ’s bestial behaviour, the report admitted – but nothing was done.

All in all, it is one of the most appalling sex abuse scandals of modern times which has brought international shame on the BBC.

Yet has any senior manager who presided over this debacle been called to account? Of course not.

The Corporation’s vast armies of well-paid bureaucrats told the inquiry they knew nothing. And, despite conceding that ‘they would say that, wouldn’t they’, Dame Janet chose to believe them.

The only person sacked, for allegedly not cooperating with the inquiry, was the veteran Radio 2 DJ Tony Blackburn.

Dame Janet found that no senior manager at the BBC 'ever found out about any specific complaint relating to Savile's inappropriate sexual conduct in connection with his work for the BBC'

It is difficult to avoid the conclusion that this was to shift attention away cynically from the fact the BBC’s upper echelons were all getting off scot-free.

Just imagine how the Corporation would have reacted if the managers of a private company had shirked their responsibility in such a shameless way? The story would have led the sanctimonious BBC’s bulletins for weeks.

One of the great mysteries of the universe is why, when a full judicial inquiry was ordered by the Prime Minister into phone hacking by a now defunct tabloid newspaper, the BBC Trust was allowed to get away with commissioning its own investigation by Dame Janet.

Is the molestation and rape of young girls on the Corporation’s premises really the less grave of these two matters?

Or is it one rule for the BBC and another for the rest of us?

What is certain is that Dame Janet delivered exactly what was expected from Day One: an expensive whitewash that fails Savile’s victims all over again.

SAVILE REPORT'S KEY FINDINGS Jimmy Savile abused 72 victims at the BBC going back to 1959 when he raped a 13-year-old girl at Lime Grove Studios;

The DJ sexually assaulted 57 women or girls and 15 boys, with the youngest girl he raped being 13 and youngest boy being 10.

He was responsible for eight rapes – two of them against males;

Savile’s youngest male and female victims were both eight years old at the time of the assault;

His most recent attack was in 2006 when he indecently touched a woman following filming of the last ever episode of Top of the Pops – when Savile was aged 79;

Other vile crimes exposed included the rape of both a virgin teenager in a hotel and a 15-year-old work experience girl he met in the BBC canteen over a cup of tea;

Savile was a 'serial sexual predator' and the BBC missed five opportunities to stop his misconduct;

Despite the revelations, Dame Janet controversially said the corporation’s failure to stop Savile was not the fault of senior managers;

She concluded that some of the disgraced DJ's colleagues were aware of his depravity but believed senior managers were never told.

Although top executives claimed to have no idea about Savile's paedophilia, rumours that he liked young girls were rife among some of the top BBC's top stars;

Dame Janet said she could not rule out the possibility that 'a predatory child abuser could be lurking in the BBC even today'. Advertisement

Theroux reported Savile to BBC bosses over abuse of girl aged 15

False impression: Savile with Louis Theroux on the documentary When Louis Met Jimmy

Louis Theroux reported Savile to the BBC in 2001 after discovering he had slept with an underage girl, Dame Janet says.

The documentary maker told an executive producer about the ‘credible allegation’, but it was decided not to report the information to police.

It was ten years before Savile died, and a woman in her 40s came forward to say that when she was 15, in the late 1960s or early 1970s, she had been the DJ’s ‘girlfriend’ and had had sex with him.

She apparently approached Theroux because she wanted to correct the impression given by Savile in a documentary, When Louis Met Jimmy, that he had never had a girlfriend.

Theroux met the woman and her friend, who was another ‘ex-girlfriend’, a year after the film was broadcast in 2000, and they told him that ‘contrary to what Savile had said in the documentary, Savile had had many girlfriends and they were two of them… and that several of Savile’s ex-girlfriends were friendly with each other’, said Dame Janet.

‘One of them had started a sexual relationship with Savile when she was only 15. Mr Theroux said that he therefore realised that Savile had committed a criminal offence by having sex with a girl of 15.

Savile acts as doorman at London's Victoria Palace Theatre for the arrival of the Princess of Wales in 1984

Rubbing shoulders with royalty: Savile also met Prince Charles on a number of occasions during his career

‘However, because it had happened over 30 years previously and because the woman in question was then in her 40s and capable of making a complaint to the police if she wanted to and was very concerned (like the other woman he met) that Savile did not know that they were meeting Mr Theroux, he did not consider that he should do anything about what he had been told.’

Theroux did speak to an executive producer at the BBC, David Mortimer, who told the inquiry he remembered ‘becoming aware of the serious nature of the information and discussing how the information should be dealt with’.

But as the meeting with the women had taken place in confidence, neither felt they could take it further without permission.

Dame Janet said neither could be criticised for that decision.

REPORT IS AN 'EXPENSIVE WHITEWASH' SAYS VICTIMS' LAWYER BECAUSE DAME JANET HAD NO POWER TO MAKE SENIOR MANAGERS GIVE EVIDENCE Savile and Hall's victims will see Dame Janet's report as an 'expensive whitewash', according to Liz Dux (pictured), the lawyer representing them Jimmy Savile and Stuart Hall's victims will see Dame Janet Smith's report as an 'expensive whitewash', according to a lawyer representing them. Liz Dux, of Slater and Gordon Lawyers, represents 168 victims of abuse. The specialist abuse lawyer said: 'All the Savile and Hall victims have ever wanted from this report is truth and accountability. 'Despite millions having been spent on the inquiry, my clients will feel let down that the truth has still not been unearthed and many will feel it is nothing more than an expensive whitewash. 'It is unfortunate that Dame Janet had no power to compel senior managers to give evidence, giving the impression that the whole picture of who knew what has not been revealed. 'With 117 witnesses giving evidence of concerns and rumours, it's implausible to suggest that this did not reach the upper echelons of the BBC. 'What's apparent is that the senior managers only had to scratch at the very surface and a lot of Savile's offending would have been revealed. 'There is real concern that the culture of fear and oppression referred to might have prevented more from speaking out more candidly and still exists today.' Advertisement

Rumours that Savile liked young girls, was a necrophiliac, and used his campervan for sex were rife among staff and stars at the BBC

By Anthony Joseph for MailOnline

The report states that Dame Esther Rantzen heard that Savile was sexually interested in young girls

Despite senior management claiming to have no idea about Jimmy Savile's paedophilia, rumours that he liked young girls were rife among some of the top stars at the BBC.

From Lord Michael Grade to Dame Esther Rantzen, Chinese whispers had travelled.

There were stories of him licking a young girl's hand, jokes about him 'screwing minors' and that he was a necrophiliac, but they were never investigated at the time.

Dame Janet Smith's report, which was published yesterday, reveals some of the shocking rumours which had been doing the rounds at the time.

The report states that Dame Esther heard that Savile was sexually interested in young girls.

She first heard a rumour about him in the early 1970s from a researcher who had come into the BBC from a job in Fleet Street. She heard that the people making a programme about Savile in the ITV series This is Your Life had wished to include the parents of a young girl with heart problems for whom Savile had provided financial help.

The parents refused to allow that and she said that 'the implication was that there was another side to it which was a darker side'.

But, she said, this rumour was one of many which 'swirled around' at that time in respect of all sorts of famous people.

Dame Esther said that she was told by a sound editor of Savile's Travels that Savile had recorded himself having sex with nurses at Stoke Mandeville; there was no suggestion that the nurses were unwilling.

Dame Esther Rantzen (left with Savile) heard that the shamed entertainer was sexually interested in young girls. Louis Theroux (right) was warned Savile abused dead bodies - two years before making a film about him

Michael Grade, controller of BBC1 from 1984 to 1986, admitted there was a 'groupie culture' around certain BBC stars

Her personal experience of him was that he was repulsive in the way he kissed or, rather, licked her hand and up her arm when they met.

On the ITV Exposure programme broadcast in October 2012, Dame Esther said 'We all blocked our ears to the gossip… I feel that we, in television – in his world, in some way colluded with him as a child abuser, because I now believe that's what he was'.

Lord Grade, who was Controller of BBC One in the mid-1980s, told Channel 4 News that he had 'fleetingly' heard rumours about Savile but never heard anything that he thought required investigation.

Sir Terry Wogan is reported to have described a conversation about Savile with well-known columnist Jean Rook, in which she asked: When are you going to expose him?' And he replied: 'That's your job'

In 2012, when asked by Channel 4 News as to why he never acted on it, he said: 'People would cast aspersions in a general conversation - no-one said 'I know someone who has been attacked by an artist'.

'I never heard anything that gave me cause to think we should investigate or do anything about it. But the entertainment industry is awash on a sea of rumours.

'I wouldn't like anyone to get the idea that in the seventies the people in authority in broadcasting were in any way permissive, or turned a blind eye.'

Sir Terry Wogan is reported to have described a conversation about Savile with well-known columnist Jean Rook, in which she asked: When are you going to expose him?' And he replied: 'That's your job'.

Sir Terry, who died of cancer aged 77 last month, is reported to have commented to the press: 'And nobody ever did (expose him), even though everybody had heard these rumours.'

The review wished to speak to Sir Terry but unfortunately he said he was too busy working on Children in Need.

The review then asked him if he could confirm the accuracy of the press report, to which he replied confirming Ms Rook had made the reported remark but his recollection was that he had not replied directly but had only thought to himself 'Surely that's your job'.

He added that he knew nothing about Savile apart from a vague rumour, which, he said, tended to be about Savile's sharp commercial practices and his shameless use of charity work for his own greater glory, rather than his sexual behaviour.

Andy Kershaw, who became a Radio 1 DJ, first heard rumours and stories about Savile in the early 1980s.

He heard from many sources that, in the 1950s and 1960s, Savile had a reputation as a gangland enforcer and would personally use physical violence against anyone who upset those who ran nightclubs and dance halls in Leeds.

Tony Brandon (far left) with (from left to right) Jimmy Saville, Tony Blackburn and Terry Wogan receiving their top DJ awards from the Reveille Newspaper

When Mr Kershaw joined the BBC he was advised by John Walters, who had in the past produced programmes with Savile, to steer clear of Savile because he was a 'bad lot' and 'nasty piece of work'. Mr Kershaw found that was so.

He heard stories relating to Savile's interest in underage girls; for example it was said he had sex with young teenage girls in his campervan.

Mr Kershaw added these rumours were rife throughout the entertainment industry and were not limited to the BBC.

Andy Kershaw, who became a Radio 1 DJ, first heard rumours and stories about Savile in the early 1980s.

He heard from many sources that, in the 1950s and 1960s, Savile had a reputation as a gangland enforcer and would personally use physical violence against anyone who upset those who ran nightclubs and dance halls in Leeds.

Mark Lawson told the review of a 'joke' that dated from two decades ago: 'What do Margaret Thatcher and Jimmy Savile have in common? They both screwed the miners/minors.'

When Mr Kershaw joined the BBC he was advised by John Walters, who had in the past produced programmes with Savile, to steer clear of Savile because he was a 'bad lot' and 'nasty piece of work'. Mr Kershaw found that was so.

He heard stories relating to Savile's interest in underage girls; for example it was said he had sex with young teenage girls in his campervan. Mr Kershaw added these rumours were rife throughout the entertainment industry and were not limited to the BBC.

Mark Lawson, the journalist, broadcaster and author, heard rumours about Savile before he joined the BBC and afterwards.

Whilst at the BBC, he heard that Savile was a groper and a paedophile.

He told the review of a 'joke' that dated from two decades ago: 'What do Margaret Thatcher and Jimmy Savile have in common? They both screwed the miners/minors.'

Mr Lawson also saw Savile assault a young woman who was working on BBC Radio 4's Front Row, on which the paedophile appeared in 2006, the report says. He was nearly 80 years old when he discussed the last edition of Top of the Pops on the programme.

BBC arts presenter Lawson appeared on Front Row for 16 years before quitting the show after being accused by colleagues of 'horrendous' bullying.

Stuart Hall abused 21 victims at the BBC - the youngest of whom was just ten years old - and senior managers KNEW... but told one victim 'you can take a joke'

By Anthony Joseph for MailOnline

Disgraced presenter Stuart Hall abused 21 victims at the BBC and the youngest was just 10 years old.

Staff at BBC Manchester knew the former It's A Knockout host was taking women into his dressing room for sex, although not that some of them were under age, a report by former High Court judge Dame Linda Dobbs found.

The report said he had 21 female victims at the BBC, with the youngest aged 10, between 1967 and 1991, but no complaints were passed on to senior management.

Fall from grace: The ex-BBC presenter Stuart Hall has spoken out in the first interview since his release from jail in December, after he was charged with abusing 13 girls - one of whom was just nine years old

Free man: The 86-year-old even went so far as to describe the people who spoke out against him as 'vindictive' and 'malicious'. He was pictured yesterday enjoying a stroll in Oldham, Greater Manchester

However, it emerged that senior managers knew one victim who was told 'you can take a joke'.

Hall, now 86, was released in December after serving half of a five-year jail term for historical indecent assaults against girls aged between nine and 17.

One BBC manager who 'knew' about Stuart Hall was named in the report as Ray Colley, Regional Television Manager, North West 1970 – 86.

A woman who complained to him about Hall told the inquiry of 'daily sexual harrasment', saying: 'If you were female, at the slightest opportunity he put his arms around you and forced his body against yours…he could stroke your knee or tweak your stocking top, put his hand on your breast or rub your back.'

But she said the reaction of Mr Colley, 'who was present during some of the incidents', was: 'Oh, come on, you can take a joke', she said, 'or to say words to the effect of, 'you can handle that, couldn't you, you're a big tough girl'.'

Mr Colley, the report said, gave Hall a dressing down about his conduct after the former arrived at BBC Manchester in 1970, suggesting rumours about Hall's sexual activity were circulating even then. However he failed to take any subsequent 'positive steps' to check if Hall was behaving.

Hall's wife Hazel (pictured with her husband) has now sold the £1.2million four-bedroom mansion where the couple used to live

Summarising Dame Linda's report, Dame Janet Smith said: 'There were concerns that management would not deal with it because of Hall's importance to the success of his shows and his celebrity status; he therefore became 'untouchable'.'

The report said people who were interviewed gave various reasons for a failure to report him, including it being nothing to do with them, fears they were too junior to interfere or might lose their job, or that it was up to management to take action.

The reports said Hall's actions had to be seen in the context of the behaviour standards of the time, but added: 'It is difficult not to conclude that, in view of the unusual opportunities for the abuse of young girls that some of the BBC's work generated, it should have put in place measures designed to prevent such abuse.

'Whether such measures would have prevented some or all of the especially inappropriate conduct committed by Hall in connection with his work for the BBC is difficult to say.

'It is likely at the very least that they would have prevented those incidents with which the Hall investigation is primarily concerned, namely those which took place on the BBC's premises in Manchester.'

The report said young female visitors to BBC Manchester were jokingly referred to as 'Hall's nieces' who had come for 'elocution lessons'.

It also referred to Hall's 'laddish sexuality, characterised by risque banter and often unwanted tactility'.

The official inquiry also concluded that the BBC must undergo 'self-examination' to ensure Jimmy Savile's 'terrible' reign of abuse. Savile was found to have molested 72 victims as young as eight.

Dame Smith controversially said the corporation's failure to stop the monster Jim'll Fix It star was not the fault of senior managers.

Her long-awaited review found there was a culture of 'reverence and fear' towards celebrities at the corporation and that 'an atmosphere of fear still exists today in the BBC'.

Yesterday, BBC director-general Lord Hall apologised to the victims of Savile and Hall.

'Very difficult': Stuart Hall, pictured left in December near his bail hostel, told inmates before his release that he had no intention of handing back his OBE to the Queen, right, despite his conviction for sex attacks

He said: 'The BBC failed you when it should have protected you. I'm deeply sorry for the hurt caused to each and every one of you.'

He added that one account of a Savile victim in particular had stuck in his mind.

'One of the survivors was told 'Keep your mouth shut, he's a VIP',' he said.

'This hit me because it made it so very clear that we, the BBC, did that.

'Savile committed his crimes in many places but it was the BBC that made him famous.

'What this terrible episode tells us is that fame is power, a very strong form of power.

If you were female, at the slightest opportunity he put his arms around you and forced his body against yours…he could stroke your knee or tweak your stocking top, put his hand on your breast or rub your back A woman who complained about Hall

'And like all power it must be held to account, it must be challenged and it must be scrutinised, and it wasn't.'

In June 2013, Hall was jailed for 15 months after he admitted indecently assaulting 13 girls, before the sentence was doubled by the Court of the Appeal, which ruled it was 'inadequate'.

Last May he received an additional 30 months in jail - to run consecutively - for two indecent assaults on another girl.

Yesterday, Stuart Hall has insisted that he is the victim in his first interview since he was released from jail for abusing 13 girls - one of whom was just nine years old.

The disgraced ex-BBC presenter described how going 'from being a national treasure to the bottom of the pond has been very difficult'.

The 86-year-old even went so far as to describe the people who spoke out against him as 'vindictive' and 'malicious'.

Hall served just half of his five-year jail term.

And he was photographed enjoying his freedom yesterday in Oldham, Greater Manchester, near to the bail hostel were he is currently staying.

'I am bearing up. I am living in a vacuum. It's like being in a void,' the It's A Knockout presenter told The Sun in his first interview since his release from prison last December.

'I don't look more than a day ahead. I live one day at a time.'

His comments came on the eve of the release of a report into sex crimes at the BBC.

Sacked Tony Blackburn claims he has been made a 'scapegoat' by the BBC after being axed on the eve of damning Jimmy Savile sex abuse report



By Sam Tonkin and Darren Boyle for MailOnline

Tony Blackburn, pictured yesterday, said he has been 'axed' by the BBC after almost 50 years following allegations that he had seduced a 15-year-old girl in 1971, a claim that he has strongly denied

Veteran DJ Tony Blackburn last night accused the BBC of making him a 'scapegoat' after he was sacked on the eve of the release of a damning report into the Jimmy Savile sex abuse cover-up.

Blackburn, 73, claimed the corporation's Director General Tony Hall decided personally to 'terminate' his contract over the contents of the £10million review by Dame Janet Smith.

The Radio 2 star, fired after five decades on the air, is now planning to sue the BBC after saying 'all relationships' he had with the corporation had been 'terminated with immediate effect'.

Dame Janet yesterday condemned the BBC for its deferential culture and attitude towards 'untouchable' stars - but cleared management of any wrongdoing despite revealing they were warned of Savile's abuse.

Blackburn claims he was sacked because his evidence to Dame Janet’s review concerning an investigation in 1971 contradicted the BBC’s own version of events.

He has pledged to take legal action against the corporation for destroying his reputation, claiming the BBC was making him a 'scapegoat' for the 'cover-up' of abuse.

The investigation in 1971 followed an allegation of assault made by the mother of a 15-year-old girl, Claire McAlpine, who alleged she was seduced by the DJ as well as several other celebrities.

Ms McAlpine took her own life in March 1971 after appearing on Top of the Pops.

According to the Smith review, which was published yesterday, Blackburn is referred to as 'A7' and is accused of seducing the young girl, an allegation the DJ strongly denies.

Blackburn, who was the first DJ to broadcast on Radio 1 in 1967, says he was never interviewed over the incident but claims the BBC says he was interviewed twice.

In a statement released last night, he said the decision to sack him had been taken by BBC Director General Tony Hall.

Tony Blackburn, pictured in 1971, has denied allegations he seduced a 15-year-old girl that same year

Claire McAlpine, pictured on the set of Top of the Pops took her own life after she claimed she had been abused by BBC stars in 1971. Tony Blackburn said Ms McAlpine had withdrawn any allegation against him

Claire McAlpine, pictured left, with Jimmy Savile on Top of the Pops, had written a diary before taking her life

He said: 'I am told that the decision was taken personally by the director-general. Quite naturally, I am devastated.

'The reasons for the BBC taking this decision are that my evidence to Dame Janet Smith shows, I believe, that a cover-up took place - one that I had no knowledge of. This goes against what the BBC believe.

TONY BLACKBURN'S STATEMENT FOLLOWING HIS AXING BY THE BBC This week, two days before the publication of the Dame Janet Smith Report, the BBC informed me that all relationships I had with them were being terminated with immediate effect. I am told that the decision was taken, personally, by the Director General. Quite naturally, I am devastated. The reasons for the BBC taking this decision are that my evidence to Dame Janet Smith shows, I believe, that a cover up took place - one that I had no knowledge of. This goes against what the BBC believe. In 1971 allegations were made by the mother of a 15 year old girl whose diary apparently contained suggestions that she had been seduced by celebrities including me. I am told that the mother told the BBC, a few weeks after her initial complaint, that her daughter had withdrawn the allegation against me. I have never seen the diary and neither has anyone at the BBC or the Dame Janet Review. That same year this seemingly troubled teenager tragically took her own life. Dame Janet’s report makes no suggestion that I was guilty 45 years ago of any misconduct whatsoever with this girl. Nor did a Coroner’s inquest or a subsequent police inquiry into her death. The BBC have made clear that they are not terminating my relationship with them because of any misconduct. They are destroying my career and reputation because my version of events does not tally with theirs. I was not guilty of any inappropriate conduct; my lawyers will take immediate action against anyone suggesting that I was. According to BBC records seen by Dame Janet, I was allegedly interviewed about the girls’ diary before her death in 1971 by a very senior figure at the BBC, Bill Cotton Jr. I was also, supposedly, interviewed by Brian Neill QC as part of his report in to the Payola scandal at the BBC. I have repeatedly told Dame Janet and the BBC I was never interviewed by either man in this context and the BBC records are either very vague or have, conveniently, disappeared. Regardless of these facts, the BBC is axing me after five decades of broadcasting. Sadly what is happening to me now seems to be entirely in keeping with the past BBC culture of whitewash and cover-up. In 1967, I proudly opened Radio 1 for the BBC. Over the past 49 years I have enjoyed my time working for them immensely and I am grateful to my millions of listeners for their continued support over the decades. Sadly, despite being aware of my evidence for many months, if not years, the BBC have decided to make me a scapegoat and have taken away any future opportunity I have to broadcast for them. Naturally, I am now left with no choice but to take legal action against the BBC. They have taken away a career I love and I will not allow them to destroy my reputation. Advertisement

'In 1971, allegations were made by the mother of a 15-year-old girl whose diary apparently contained suggestions that she had been seduced by celebrities including me.

'I am told that the mother told the BBC, a few weeks after her initial complaint, that her daughter had withdrawn the allegation against me.

'I have never seen the diary and neither has anyone at the BBC or the Dame Janet review. That same year this seemingly troubled teenager tragically took her own life.'

According to Blackburn's statement, he claims the Dame Janet report makes no suggestion that he is guilty of any crime or misconduct with the girl.

'Nor did a coroner’s inquest or a subsequent police inquiry into her death,' he added.

'The BBC have made clear that they are not terminating my relationship with them because of any misconduct. They are destroying my career and reputation because my version of events does not tally with theirs.

'I was not guilty of any inappropriate conduct; my lawyers will take immediate action against anyone suggesting that I was.

'According to BBC records seen by Dame Janet, I was allegedly interviewed about the girl’s diary before her death in 1971 by a very senior figure at the BBC, Bill Cotton Jr.

'I was also, supposedly, interviewed by Brian Neill QC as part of his report into the Payola scandal at the BBC.

'I have repeatedly told Dame Janet and the BBC I was never interviewed by either man in this context and the BBC records are either very vague or have, conveniently, disappeared.

'Regardless of these facts, the BBC is axing me after five decades of broadcasting.

'Sadly, what is happening to me now seems to be entirely in keeping with the past BBC culture of whitewash and cover-up.

'In 1967, I proudly opened Radio 1 for the BBC. Over the past 49 years I have enjoyed my time working for them immensely and I am grateful to my millions of listeners for their continued support over the decades.

'Sadly, despite being aware of my evidence for many months, if not years, the BBC have decided to make me a scapegoat and have taken away any future opportunity I have to broadcast for them.

'Naturally, I am now left with no choice but to take legal action against the BBC. They have taken away a career I love and I will not allow them to destroy my reputation.'

The Dame Janet report accused the BBC of covering up allegations concerning Blackburn from 1971.

The former Court of Appeal judge's team interviewed Blackburn in 2013 where he denied ever being questioned about the allegation.

However, Dame Janet said: 'For my part, I am satisfied that an investigation did take place, which comprised an interview with A7 at which he denied the allegations.'

Sir Brian Neill, QC who conducted the 1971 review said: 'Mr A7 told me the girl had come to see him on several occasions and had invented stories for the purpose of getting access to him.

'He said she seemed to him in a sort of fantasy world but that she had not made any sexual advances of any kind.'