Sir Jimmy Savile O.B.E.

Sir Jimmy Savile (1926-2011)

Radio DJ and TV star Sir Jimmy Savile has died at home at the age of 84.

He had recently been treated in hospital for pneumonia.

One of the most enduring voices, and faces, since the 1960s, he was also a phenomenal fundraiser, running hundreds of marathons for various charities.

Sir James Wilson Vincent Savile OBE, KCSG came from a time where being eccentric was actually a positive bonus for those wishing to carve out a career in the public spotlight.

Quite apart from his manifest skills as a disc jockey and TV presenter, the man that was Jimmy (as he was universally known) came with a bundle of catchphrases and a unique visual style that marked him out from the pack.

Sir Jimmy Savile’s early life

Born in Leeds, the youngest child of seven, by the time he was 14, Jimmy Savile was already working as a coal miner.

He soon gravitated towards show business, but by the relatively novel route of professional wrestling.

“By the time he was 14, Jimmy Savile was already working as a coal miner”
It’s said that the loan of a friend’s record player led to Sir Jimmy first developing his interest in music, and in particular, becoming the type of man that made a living playing the “platters that matter.”

During the 1950s, he managed and worked at various dance halls – ranging from the north of England to Essex. This line of work kept him preoccupied in the
evenings, but left his days free to work as a hospital porter, wrestle and compete in various cycling events.

Although something of a jack-of-all-trades, it was through his disc-spinning and “hep-speak” delivery that he began his rise towards national prominence.

In the early 1960s, Sir Jimmy became a regular presenter on Radio Luxembourg, at that time perhaps the hippest destination on the dial.

Television came calling in 1960, when Sir Jimmy found himself fronting eight episodes of Young at Heart, a music show made for ITV by the north east broadcaster, Tyne Tees.

Four years later, the BBC was looking for someone to front its new Manchester-based music show, and so on New Year’s Day 1964, Jimmy Savile became the first person to present an edition of the legendary, long-running Top of the Pops.

He would remain a presenter on the show for the next 20 years.

I was lucky enough to meet him in person on a few occasions, one genuine guy for sure. 🙂