STUART HALL ADMITS OFFENCES; ROACHE CHARGED.

Stuart Hall's admission that he committed sexual assaults against 13 young girls, aged 9 to 17, while working at the BBC must raise yet more concern about the appalling culture which existed at the corporation over a period of several decades. Following on from the revelations about the behaviour of Jimmy Saville and allegations against several other well-known figures, Hall's admission provides definitive evidence that something was seriously wrong in an organisation in which it seems that many knew of this type of activity but no one acted.

 

Additionally, Bill Roache, a man whose entire acting life seems to have been devoted to playing one character in a 'soap' has now been charged with 2 counts of rape, both offences being committed at the same 15 year old in 1967. Whether or not these charges are eventually proven, the CPS clearly believes that there is sufficient evidence to ask a jury to consider it and the old adage 'there's no smoke without fire' may well be relevant.

 

Both Hall and Saville were, apparently, well respected figures at the BBC where they both worked for many years; others who've been implicated have also had connections to the BBC though not exclusively so, as is demonstrated by the case of Roache. What is common to all is that they were 'celebrities' and people with a degree of power over their victims; after all, who would have believed some silly teenager's cry of 'Rape !' against Saville ? He was too well known to be thought of as a sex-offender, as was Hall and as, no doubt, are at least some of the others.

 

The culture at the BBC was clearly shocking, but so it probably was at other media organisations. Drink, drugs and sex were the name of the game and order of the day and, in the permissive years that sprang from the 1960s, there have always been hordes of naive young people queuing up to get involved. That there were also hordes of older men queuing up to exploit them, with no one bothering to find out out what was going on, is the real disgrace.

 

Hall, who is 83 and, perhaps, unlucky to have been caught before he died, ought to spend his remaining days behind bars, however many they are. If Roache, who's 81, is found guilty his sentence should be the same. As for the rest of those already arrested and / or questioned by the police, they are mostly older men of the same ilk and, if offences are proven, none of them should ever see the light of day again.

 

All that remains is to find out who were the people who knew, but did nothing. They have a great deal to answer for.