Documents reveal Savile's relationship with government

Newly released records show Jimmy Savile's relationship with the Government as he tried to enlist support for his work to renovate Stoke Mandeville Hospital.

The previously unseen documents reveal Savile's regular communications with former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and Number 10, as well as a lunch meeting with the Conservative leader at Chequers in 1981.

Savile made successful attempts to secure a £500,000 government contribution for his charitable work at the hospital, which is located only three miles away from the Prime Minister's official country residence.

The documents include two letters from the Prime Minister directly addressed to Savile between February 5th 1980 and January 8th 1982, and one handwritten response from the then star DJ, which declared his "love" for the Conservative leader.

Savile asked the Government about charitable tax relief in 1980 and how long it would take to qualify for potential deductions.

The Prime Minister writes to Jimmy Savile:

In Savile's letter to Thatcher the star spoke of the reaction of his "girl patients" and "paralyzed lads" to his lunch date with her.

A government official asked the Prime Minister to clarify whether she had "made any promises to Savile when he visited (Chequers)", for instance, "Did you tell him that you would appear on Jim'll Fix it?" to which Mrs Thatcher wrote: "No".

Cabinet Minister Norman Fowler agreed to make funds available for Savile's charitable work in 1981.

Savile was expected to write to Thatcher to invite her to visit the Stoke Mandeville building for a ceremonial handover of £500,000 government funds.