The Savile “revelations” and the more recent conviction of once beloved family entertainer Rolf Harris on charges of historical sexual abuse have led to calls for a wide-ranging inquiry into allegations of organised paedophile rings operating at the heart of not simply the government but the establishment. The latest such “revelation” has seen former Home Secretary Leon Brittan quizzed over an allegation of rape dating to 1967.
A skeptic might ask how long will this nonsense go on, will we have to wait until Prince Philip is questioned under caution before the penny drops that something is seriously wrong here, in particular with the weight given to the unsupported allegations of sensation seekers, fantasists, fanatics and outright liars of both sexes?
Fortunately there are some people who are not swept up in the hysteria of the moment. The Anna Raccoon blog has published some critical analysis of the entire sorry affair, and has even suggested an explanation for the linking of Rolf Harris with the late Jimmy Savile. There are those including the NSPCC who would have us believe that Savile was the most prolific groper and occasional rapist these islands have ever seen. Following the conviction of Rolf Harris, numerous further allegations have been made against him, as might be expected. Videos have also come to light of him with Savile. However, there is one telling video that might cause the whole sordid skein to unravel.
In 1985, Harris starred in a child safety film called Kids Can Say No! This was made with some input from the NSPCC, although that august organisation has now tried to distance itself from it.
The NSPCC is riding the crest of a wave, and is clearly intent on milking it for all it is worth; currently when you log on to its website you are greeted by an invitation to donate. Here is an archived version of its homepage. The desperate faces that stare back at you are clearly not those of abused children - sexually or otherwise - but of child models.
The full Kids Can Say No! video has recently been uploaded to YouTube, apparently by an uncritical believer in his guilt. This film has been interpreted as crass hypocrisy or even chutzpah by Harris, but there is another explanation for the plethora of allegations made against him: transferred confabulation. Likewise, Jimmy Savile did a fair amount of work with kids, and could also have been a victim of this kind of false memory. If you are not convinced, check out this short video by Elizabeth Loftus.
[In the 1980s, Rolf Harris made a video to raise awareness about child sexual abuse. Could this be the source of his troubles?]
If you want to explore the issue of Savile’s innocence further, the Anna Raccoon blog has published a number of documents from the extensive investigations into him. Here is a taster:
“Circa 1959, the alleged victim A/N249*, then aged 7-8 years old was admitted to Booth Hall Hospital to have an appendectomy. She was in a ward with other patients, there were no staff present. Savile came in to visit accompanied by the patient’s father, the patient’s full statement details the fact that her father not only abused her but allowed Savile to do so. She alleges that this happened numerous times over a period of years. During the visit to Booth Hall Hospital Savile put his hands under the bed clothes and sexually assaulted her. She was not sure how long this took and does not remember it happening again at Booth Hall Hospital. She told no one.”
Does this sound credible?
Here is another article that traces many of the allegations against Savile to a forged letter.
Does this allegation sound quite so credible now? Most of the other allegations against Savile are similar to these, what they all have in common is that they were uncorroborated and were not reported at the time. Could Jimmy Savile be the victim of a monstrous, albeit posthumous injustice, and more to the point, is Rolf Harris?
[The above article was published originally July 12, 2014. The video Kids Can Say No! has now been removed from YouTube. The archived version here was downloaded from the Daily Motion website on November 8, 2014; on July 22, 2022, it was uploaded to this site.]
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