How Prince William Reportedly Feels About Diana's Portrayal In BBC's Upcoming Show

The BBC's upcoming drama about Jimmy Savile is already a controversial show, and it isn't even done filming yet. Called "The Reckoning," it follows Jimmy Savile's life from childhood up through what the Daily Mail calls his "reign of abuse."

When asked why the BBC was making the show, executive producer Jeff Pope told the Daily Mail, "I think this is a story that has to be told. We must understand why a man like Jimmy Savile seemed to remain immune for so long to proper scrutiny and criminal investigation." Savile, who passed away in 2011 at the age of 84, came from a "humble working-class upbringing" and became what the Daily Mail calls "one of British television's biggest stars."

Knighted for his work, Savile was revered by many and "cozied up to the people at the top of society," per The Sun. Royal biographer Richard Kay explained to Express that Savile "was pretty well established in government circles, with prime ministers of the day. And by being pretty well established, he was fairly untouchable." Those at the top of society he cozied up to included Prince Charles, and Princess Diana by association.

According to Kay, Savile was a major presence in the young couple's lives, or tried to be. "He would turn up, Diana told me," Kay explained, "at Kensington Palace, where she lived, uninvited and would manage to persuade the police on the...gate, who never let anyone in without an invitation, to walk in."

There is one only scene in the upcoming BBC drama "The Reckoning" that will have Prince Charles and Princess Diana. According to Newsweek, the royal couple won't even be speaking, but will be seen "briefly in a scene that reflects their presence at the official opening of the new Spinal Injuries Unit at Stoke Mandeville Hospital." The statement went on to add that the location was another hunting ground Savile used to commit "horrific abuse."

The royal couple was split on their feelings about Jimmy Savile. "At the time, Charles was gullible," royal biographer Richard Kay told Express. "I mean, I'm saying with hindsight he was gullible. At the time he was gullible, as was everybody else." Diana, though, is reported to have "recoiled" from Savile. One insider told The Sun Savile's relationship with Diana especially may have been important, but they believed others "played a greater part in him getting access to young people and hiding in plain sight."

In his "four decade campaign of sexual abuse," an investigation done by the BBC discovered Savile had "molested at least 72 children, some as young as 8," beginning in 1959 and ending in 2006, per the Daily Mail.

Savile's legacy and any associations with it reportedly aren't sitting right with the Duke of Cambridge. While this the new drama won't be showing much of Prince Charles and Princess Diana, according to a royal insider: "Prince William would have preferred not to see his mother feature alongside this vile monster at all" (via The Sun).