Jimmy Savile inquiry: BBC missed chances to uncover child abuse

THE BBC missed a string of opportunities over five decades to uncover and stop 'monstrous' child sex abuse by shamed broadcasters Jimmy Savile and Stuart Hall, a long-awaited inquiry has found.

In a withering attack, Dame Janet Smith said the corporation bred a culture of deference in which celebrities were “untouchable” and “King” Savile and Hall were able to hide in plain sight.

Her 1,220-page report found that Savile “would gratify himself sexually on BBC premises whenever the opportunity arose” and staff missed numerous opportunities to stop him.

BBC director general Lord Hall said the findings represented a “dark chapter” in the broadcaster’s history and apologised to victims, saying: “The BBC failed you when it should have protected you. I’m deeply sorry for the hurt caused.”

Dame Janet Smith whose long-awaited report into sexual abuse by the disgrace Picture: Phil Noble/PA Wire

Lawyers representing some of Savile’s victims branded the £6.5 million report an “expensive whitewash” after Dame Janet found senior figures at the BBC did not know about the abuse. Dame Janet’s 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” which prevents some from blowing the whistle on inappropriate behaviour.

When in the 1980s a junior female employee at Television Centre complained to her supervisor that she had been sexually assaulted by Savile, she was told “keep your mouth shut, he is a VIP”, the report found.

Dame Janet said: “Savile and Stuart Hall were serial sexual predators. Savile was a danger to young people, both girls and boys, opportunistic and shameless.

“I have identified 72 BBC victims of Savile, of whom 34 were under the age of 16. His youngest victim was aged eight. His abuse included eight cases of rape, the youngest victim being only ten years old.

DJ Tony Blackburn, who has accused the BBC of making him a 'scapegoat' after he was sacked on the eve of publication the report Picture: PA Wire

“Stuart Hall targeted and groomed young girls, often plying them with alcohol.”

She said Dame Linda Dobbs, who conducted a parallel inquiry into Hall, identified 21 victims of abuse – eight of whom were girls under the age of 16, the youngest being ten.

Dame Janet said: “Both of these men used their fame and positions as BBC celebrities to abuse the vulnerable. They must be condemned for their monstrous behaviour.

“But the culture at the BBC certainly enabled both Savile and Stuart Hall to go undetected for decades. I have identified five occasions where the BBC missed an opportunity to uncover their misconduct.”

BBC staff missed chances dating back to the late 1960s to stop Savile, who died in October 2011 aged 84 never having been brought to justice for his crimes and is now believed to be one of Britain’s most prolific sex offenders.

Girls who dared to complain about being sexually assaulted were regarded as “a nuisance” and their claims not properly dealt with.

Savile sexually assaulted two teenage girls in front of the cameras in the Top Of The Pops studio on separate occasions in the 1960s and 1970s. But when the girls complained, they were brushed off and one was escorted out of the premises.

He first struck in 1959 when he raped a 13-year-old girl in a room at Lime Grove in Shepherd’s Bush, where the BBC had studios. And he was still using his fame to prey on his victims five decades later, sexually assaulting a woman outside the Top Of The Pops studio in 2006.

Dame Janet found that a number of BBC staff were aware of Savile’s offending, or had heard rumours, but she cleared the broadcaster as a corporate body of knowing about it.

Her report stated: “In summary, my conclusion is that certain junior and middle-ranking individuals were aware of Savile’s inappropriate sexual conduct in connection with his work for the BBC.

“However, I have found no evidence that the BBC, as a corporate body, was aware of Savile’s inappropriate sexual conduct in connection with his work for the BBC.”

Savile struck in nearly every corner of the organisation, including the BBC Theatre at Shepherd’s Bush where Jim’ll Fix It and Clunk Click were filmed, Television Centre where Top Of The Pops was filmed, and Broadcasting House.

But women who complained were ordered to “keep your mouth shut, he is a VIP” or told it was “just Jimmy Savile mucking about”.

Eight complaints about Savile’s behaviour were made to BBC staff as early as the late 1960s, but each time they were brushed off or not escalated up the chain of command.

In the mid-1970s Ian Hampton, bass player with the pop group Sparks, tried to raise the alarm after spotting Savile leaving the Top Of The Pops studio with a young girl amid rumours of his sexual misconduct. The guitarist alerted a BBC presenter but was simply told not to be silly, while on another occasion he spoke to producer Robin Nash, but was told not to be ridiculous.

Hall was found to have sexually assaulted girls as young as ten. He often took young girls back to his BBC dressing room in Manchester where he plied them with alcohol and assaulted them.

Dame Janet said there was a culture of not reporting complaints at the BBC and a fear of saying anything that might “rock the boat”.

She warned there was a particular fear of whistleblowing at the corporation and added: “I was told that an atmosphere of fear still exists today in the BBC”. She added: “As I have said, there was a culture of not complaining about anything.” Dame Janet said she could not rule out the possibility that “a predatory child abuser could be lurking in the BBC even today”.

Liz Dux, a specialist abuse lawyer at Slater and Gordon Lawyers, who represents 168 victims, said: “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.”

Scottish heritage: for stories on Scotland’s people, places and history >>