Line Of Duty viewers horrified as real-life Jimmy Savile paedophile ring becomes part of series 6 plot

Line Of Duty fans were shocked during series 6’s latest episode when Jimmy Savile became part of the investigation into Gail Vella’s death.

As the shocking new BBC crime drama continued, things took a turn when it mentioned a connection to the real-life paedophile ring led by Savile.

Gail Vella (played by Andi Osho), an investigative journalist, was shot dead outside her house on September 10, 2019, with the AC-12 team now trying to catch the culprit.

In the latest episode, Steve Arnott (Martin Compston) and Superintendent Ted Hastings (Adrian Dunbar) watched unaired footage of the journalist covering the child sex abuse court case of Chief Superintendent Patrick Fairbank – during which she suggested senior police officers could be connected to Savile’s wrongdoings.

In the news bulletin, Vella said: ‘A jury found retired Chief Superintendent Patrick Fairbank guilty of all charges.

‘What that jury didn’t hear, and only now am I allowed to report, are allegations Patrick Fairbanks suppressed police investigations into child sexual exploitation that transcended local political figures such as counsellor Dale Roche.

‘It’s now a matter of public record that Jimmy Savile cultivated relationships with senior police officers. Savile exploited those relationships to intimidate anyone attempting to investigate his offending.

‘We now realise what Savile was getting out of those relationships with senior police officers, but what remains unknown, and uninvestigated, is what those officers were getting out of their relationship with Savile.’

Arnott then noted that it meant she could be a target for corrupt officers for drawing a line between organised crime, child exploitations and senior police.

Viewers were shocked at the sudden inclusion of Savile, who died in 2011, especially as he actively used his position on BBC shows like Top Of The Pops and Jim’ll Fix It in order to commit his crimes.

Since his death, more than 450 people have come forward with accusations against Savile, including Coleen Nolan who said that she was invited to his hotel room at the age of 14.

A full inquiry led by Dame Janet Smith determined in 2016 that the BBC – during the years of Savile working there – had missed out on at least five opportunities to stop the misconduct of him and It’s A Knockout host Stuart Hall, who was jailed in 2013 for indecent assault of 13 girls.

The report added that Savile would commit acts ‘whenever the opportunity arose’ and incidents took place ‘in virtually every one of the BBC premises at which he worked’.

Savile died aged 84 without ever being prosecuted for his crimes.

Metro.co.uk has contacted BBC for comment.

Line Of Duty continues Sundays at 9pm on BBC One.

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