10 Louis Theroux Documentaries You Need To Watch Before You Die

When the news broke in late 2012 that the late British radio DJ and TV presenter Jimmy Savile was at the centre of a decades-long sexual abuse scandal it prompted many British media personalities to assess their own personal relationships with Savile.

Given that Theroux had spent a week living with Savile for his 2000 documentary, When Louis Met… Jimmy, he received considerable media scrutiny for his perceived failure to press Savile on the rumours about his sexual misconduct.

This led Theroux to turn his experiences into what became a truly harrowing and deeply personal feature-length documentary about one of Britain’s most prolific sex offenders.

Throughout the documentary, Theroux met with both victims of Savile and those closest to him to attempt to establish how he was able to get away with his crimes during his lifetime.

Whilst the sickening details of the victim's accounts are incredibly powerful, the interviews with his colleagues are perhaps even more disturbing and paint a picture of a man who fooled an entire nation.

In particular, Theroux’s conversation with Janet Cope, Savile's PA of nearly 30 years, during which she still protests his innocence is almost unbelievable to watch and points to the decades-long campaign of ignorance within the British establishment.

There's no doubt that Savile is an immensely difficult watch, but it is Theroux's finest work and delivers an important message about a deeply shameful episode in British history.