Jimmy Savile - BBC Under Fire After The Tweenies Jimmy Savile Spoof Is Repeated

A repeated episode of children’s BBC show The Tweenies, that was initially show in 2001, has come under fire after it portrayed a spoof of the disgraced late disc jockey and television presenter Jimmy Savile.

The repeat of the episode was shown on the channel CBeebies on Sunday (January 20, 2013), and showed the character Max appearing in a blonde wig, wearing Savile’s trademark tracksuit and copying his accent and catchphrases. The character was hosting a spoof of a Top Of The Pops show. Given the current furore over Savile’s sexual practices, with the victims of his actions during his life running into the hundreds, the timing of the repeat hasn’t gone down well, with the BBC receiving 216 complaints about the show since yesterday morning.

With media watchdog Ofcom assessing whether any broadcasting rules had been broken, the BBC issued the following the statement: "This morning CBeebies broadcast a repeat of an episode of the Tweenies, originally made in 2001, featuring a character dressed as a DJ impersonating Jimmy Savile. This programme will not be repeated and we are very sorry for any offence caused." The Tweenies was cancelled in 2003 but has been repeated regularly on the CBeebies channel ever since.

Jimmy Savile is alleged to have abused more than 200 victims over a 60 year period