TV & Film
Steve Coogan defends decision to play Jimmy Savile saying he didn’t take it ‘lightly’
Coogan said the script was written in consultation with ‘many of the victims of Jimmy Savile’, some of whom he met himself
Steve Coogan has defended his controversial portrayal of Jimmy Savile in an upcoming BBC drama about the disgraced peadophile.
The actor and comedian will take on the role of Savile in The Reckoning, which will tell the tale of Savile’s rise to fame as a television host for the BBC, as well as his tactics to use fame and money to cover up his heinous crimes.
Coogan, from Middleton, appeared on Sunday Brunch over the weekend, where he admitted he didn’t take the decision to portray Savile ‘lightly’, but insisted the drama is needed ‘to prevent it happening again’.
Speaking to hosts Tim Lovejoy and Simon Rimmer, the actor admitted there had been a ‘great deal of antipathy’ towards him taking on the role, but said he felt the drama would play an ‘important role’.
He explained: “I think that’s because Jimmy Savile played a trick on the entire nation so there’s a real feeling of antagonism about it.
“But you need to look at someone like that to understand how they’re able to operate and to prevent it happening again.”
Read More: Steve Coogan to play Jimmy Savile in new BBC drama
He added that while he could ‘understand people’s antagonism about the whole idea’, the ‘very intelligent’ script was written in consultation with ‘many of the victims of Jimmy Savile’, with the actor himself meeting with Savile’s victims.
“I’d go and talk to them as myself and go ‘Hi, I’m Steve, I’m not Jimmy Savile, that’s who I’m going to play today’.
“And you’re playing a role and we’re going to do it professionally, and it was so that they knew that I was someone else. So it was a tightrope, but I think we did it properly.”
The BBC has also defended the drama, with executive producer Jeff Pope previously stressing that the role of Savile is being approached with the ‘greatest care and integrity’.
He said in a statement last years: “The purpose of this drama is to explore how Savile’s offending went unchecked for so long, and in shining a light on this, to ensure such crimes never happen again.
“Steve Coogan has a unique ability to inhabit complex characters and will approach this role with the greatest care and integrity.”