Steve Coogan has discussed the weight of responsibility that comes with playing the notorious paedophile Jimmy Savile in the BBC‘s upcoming documentary series The Reckoning.
He said that taking the role was a ‘risk’, but an important one to ensure that people can learn from the depraved exploitation of power which hundreds of young children were victims of.
After years of filming, The Reckoning debuts on BBC One on October 9 at 9pm with the first of its four parts.
‘To do things that are worthwhile, or have value, you have to take a risk, to make stuff that is interesting and worthwhile and has substance,’ the 57-year-old told Joe last year.
‘That carries with it a responsibility. And so, The Reckoning is one of those that fits into that category.’
Steve Coogan has discussed the weight of responsibility that comes with playing the notorious paedophile Jimmy Savile in a new BBC drama
The Reckoning debuts on BBC One on October 9 at 9pm with the first of its four parts
That risk is highlighted by the level of criticism the drama has come in for even before it has aired.
Since production began in 2020, The Reckoning has been repeatedly questioned for potentially immortalising a serial abuser.
Mr Coogan continued: ‘Lots of people are anxious about it, but I think it will vindicate itself when it comes around.
‘As a rule, when you’re talking about dark periods, when we’re talking about our cultural past, it is best to talk about things than to not talk about them.
‘If you sweep things under the carpet, then you are liable to have those things happen again because you haven’t learned from them.’
The official synopsis of the BBC mini-series describes how the two-time Oscar nominee will portray ‘a man who, for decades, became one of the UK’s most influential celebrities, but in death has become one of the most reviled figures of modern history following revelations of extensive and horrific abuse.
‘Jimmy Savile used his involvement in multiple organisations, such as the BBC, hospitals, prisons, and charities, to legitimise himself, forging friendships in show business, politics, journalism, the Catholic Church and even the Royal Family to cement his position.’
Savile, who rose from a humble working-class upbringing to become one of British television’s biggest stars, molested at least 72 children, some as young as eight, over a four decade campaign of sexual abuse.
His first known victim was in 1959 and his last in 2006.
Content source – www.soundhealthandlastingwealth.com
