Coogan truly shines. One of the greatest dramatic performances on British TV this decade so far. Maybe the finest, certainly the most unsettlingly authentic. As a lifelong fan of his comedy work, I must say - this is by far his finest dramatic turn. He's previously had a propensity for being a little hammy in non-funnies in the past, but he's absolutely nailing it here. A true revelation - I hope this is the beginning of, to paraphrase his Tony Wilson - 'his second act'.
The script, on the other hand - pee-yoo! Heavy handed is an understatement, and I don't mean with regards to the harrowing realities of what Saville was able to get away with. The dialogue from supporting players is frequently so clunky and jarringly inorganic, it's as if you've suddenly been sucked into a school play.
'Wow! You're Jimmy Saville! We saw you last night, you had the audience in the palm of hand! You're the talk of Leeds!'
Absolute rubbish. Who talks like that outside of Amateur dramatics? Just corny & borderline pathetically lazy writing for something trying to illustrate a seminal, historic and realistic point. Maybe try switching up your in-house writers? Because on this evidence, we are sorely lagging badly behind the states.
And finally - shame on the BBC. They are the last media organisation on earth who should've been allowed to make a drama which, by any rational perspective, ought to be shining a blinding light on their own inner-workings as much as Saville.
There's a major household name comic/actor, still living, of a similar generation and profile to Jimmy, who by many accounts has committed a similar level of appalling sexual crimes (who I can't name here) and is still revered & promoted actively by the Beeb - and I can guarantee they know, and that none of this will come out until after he's died. They haven't learned a thing. They haven't changed a thing. And on this evidence - they're never going to.
Coogan is so good, it pushes this to a 7. Definitely worth a watch for that alone - but don't watch it on iPlayer. I didn't.
The script, on the other hand - pee-yoo! Heavy handed is an understatement, and I don't mean with regards to the harrowing realities of what Saville was able to get away with. The dialogue from supporting players is frequently so clunky and jarringly inorganic, it's as if you've suddenly been sucked into a school play.
'Wow! You're Jimmy Saville! We saw you last night, you had the audience in the palm of hand! You're the talk of Leeds!'
Absolute rubbish. Who talks like that outside of Amateur dramatics? Just corny & borderline pathetically lazy writing for something trying to illustrate a seminal, historic and realistic point. Maybe try switching up your in-house writers? Because on this evidence, we are sorely lagging badly behind the states.
And finally - shame on the BBC. They are the last media organisation on earth who should've been allowed to make a drama which, by any rational perspective, ought to be shining a blinding light on their own inner-workings as much as Saville.
There's a major household name comic/actor, still living, of a similar generation and profile to Jimmy, who by many accounts has committed a similar level of appalling sexual crimes (who I can't name here) and is still revered & promoted actively by the Beeb - and I can guarantee they know, and that none of this will come out until after he's died. They haven't learned a thing. They haven't changed a thing. And on this evidence - they're never going to.
Coogan is so good, it pushes this to a 7. Definitely worth a watch for that alone - but don't watch it on iPlayer. I didn't.