Tom Jones was 'shocked' at Jimmy Savile sex abuse scandal but knew he 'always liked company of teenage girls'
"You always think of paedophiles as being like creepy people – well maybe to some people he did look a bit creepy," he said in a recent interview.
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Tom Jones says he was “shocked” at revelations Jimmy Savile was a paedophile, despite knowing he enjoyed the company of teenage girls.
But the singer added that he didn’t think the TV and radio personality, who presented Top Of The Pops for 20 years, was “creepy” enough to be capable of sexual abuse.
The singer was speaking to BBC Radio 5’s Afternoon Edition about his career, which Savile was instrumental in getting off the ground, when he admitted that Savile “always liked teenage girls, as long as they were over 16, which is of course legal”.
“You would see him around with young girls. When you see someone like that, you would never think he was a paedophile because of the way he handled himself,” he said.
Jones said he thought Savile’s popularity meant that people would have never imagined he was capable of such abuse because, despite appearing quite eccentric, he was incredibly popular.
"You always think of paedophiles as being like creepy people – well maybe to some people he did look a bit creepy - but he was a bit of a Jack The Lad with young girls,” he admitted.
When asked if he had seen anything untoward or suspicious when he performed on Top Of The Pops, which Savile presented, Jones said he wasn’t sure where anything could happen.
“For a start, you have to be over 16 to dance, so where was it going on?,” he said.
“I was shocked when it all came out,' he added. 'To me, Jimmy Saville was a good man. But who knows?'
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments