Jimmy Savile

Jimmy Savile was born on October 31, 1926 in Leeds, Yorkshire, England as James Wilson Vincent Savile. He was an actor, known for When Louis Met. . .

His second appearance on This Is Your Life (1955) is thought to have been a mistake by Thames TV, who had not only lost the recording of his first appearance but had completely forgotten that he had already appeared previously.

In 1962 Jimmy attempted to launch a recording career on Decca Records with the single "Ahab the Arab" written by Ray Stevens, this and its follow up "The Bossa Nova" sank quietly without trace.

Was a successful respected advertising icon in the 1970s. His most remembered advert was for the "wear seat belts" campaign called "clunk click every trip", which lead to widespread take-up of seat belt use. He has also advertised train journeys "let the train take the strain" and "this is the age of the train", Green Shield Stamps, Bisto Gravy (with his mother), Startrite Shoes and Dale Farm Yoghurts.

Due to his distinctive voice, mannerisms, catchphrases and dress sense, he was one of the most frequently impersonated celebrities in Britain for decades. Notable examples are by The Two Ronnies (1971), Mike Yarwood, Alistair McGowan and Tweenies (1999).

He was awarded the OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the 1972 Queen's New Years Honours List and was awarded Knight Bachelor of the Order of the British Empire in the 1990 Queen's New Years Honours List for his services to entertainment and charity.

He became friendly with Yorkshire Ripper Peter Sutcliffe during his trips to Broadmoor and even introduced him to boxer Frank Bruno, which is one of the few photographs taken of Sutcliffe since his incarceration in 1981.

Spitting Image (1984) made a puppet of him which showed him, in a series of sketches, being chased around by doctors with butterfly nets.

In the 1990s, satirist Christopher Morris broadcast a spoof obituary of Savile on BBC Radio 1 which claimed he had dropped dead during the Stoke Mandeville Hospital Boxing Day party, but the patients were not mourning and wished he had suffered rather more.

Irvine Welsh has acknowledged that he based his character Freddy Royle, from his 1996 story "Lorraine Goes to Livingston", on Savile. Royle, a children's TV presenter described as the nation's "favourite caring, laconic uncle", turns out to be a child molester and necrophiliac, raising millions for the hospital where he commits his crimes.

Jimmy (2000), Go Go Mania (1965) and Ferry Cross the Mersey (1964).

In October 2009 traded in his ancient Volkswagen Camper van for a new model which he uses to travel the country.

In October 2012, almost a year after his death, an ITV documentary examining claims of sexual abuse against Savile led to broad media coverage and a substantial and rapidly growing body of witness statements and sexual abuse claims, including accusations against public bodies for covering up or failure of duty. Scotland Yard launched a criminal investigation into allegations of child sex abuse by Savile over six decades, describing him as a "predatory sex offender", and later stated that they were pursuing over 400 lines of inquiry based on the testimony of 300 potential victims via fourteen police forces across the UK. By late October 2012, the scandal had resulted in inquiries or reviews at the BBC, within the National Health Service, the Crown Prosecution Service, and the Department of Health.

In January 2013, a joint report by the NSPCC and Metropolitan Police, "Giving Victims a Voice", stated that 450 people had made complaints against Savile, with the period of alleged abuse stretching from 1955 to 2009 and the ages of the complainants at the time of the assaults ranging from 8 to 47. The suspected victims included 28 children aged under 10, including 10 boys aged as young as 8. A further 63 were girls aged between 13 and 16 and nearly three-quarters of his victims were under 18. Some 214 criminal offenses were recorded, with 34 rapes having been reported across 28 police forces. Savile was never charged during his lifetime.