Bay City Rollers star Les McKeown 'never found peace' after abuse by manager
The family of the late Bay City Rollers star Les McKeown have told how he never found peace after being abused by the band’s manager when he was 19.
Heartthrob and frontman Les died a broken man in April 2021 aged 65 after battling drink and drug addiction for decades.
Despite his troubles and numerous affairs, his widow Peko Keiko stayed by his side for 40 years.
And now she and their son Jubei have laid bare the suffering and anguish he battled after being raped by manager Tam Paton.
Les kept the secret for decades and only admitted what had happened in 2009 on a reality TV show.
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Referring to him keeping it secret for so long, Peko says: “He never told me but he suffered it.
“When he was sleeping he was screaming. He cried a lot. He said to me ‘I hate Tam Paton’.” Asked if Paton raped him, she adds: “I think so.”
Bay City Rollers star Les McKeown never found peace after he was raped by the band's manager (Redferns)
The band's manager Tam Paton abused LesJubei also tells a documentary, to be aired next week, that his father’s demons were linked to his earlier troubled life. He says: “When he would go on these binges, sometimes he would say he hates himself.
“That was often…almost every time he started drinking.
“And then it kind of made sense. You know, the drinking, just the anger My dad’s a broken man. My dad never found peace in his life. That hurts.”
Jubei is now writing a book with his mum about his family’s experiences. He believes his dad only truly lost himself when on stage with the band.
ITV’s Secrets Of The Bay City Rollers, hosted by Nicky Campbell, looks at their rise as one of the biggest pop bands of the 1970s, while a darker story played out behind the scenes.
Original member Stuart “Woody” Wood shows Campbell his box of memorabilia, including the band’s famous tartan, and tells how touring worldwide with the teen idols was a ticket out of his old life in Edinburgh.
Les' son Jubei has laid bare the anguish suffered by the musicianBut once in the band, he says he faced another challenge – manager Tam Paton. Wood explains: “Tam was just very domineering, very much the band leader. He was the sixth Roller…on the road, a big kind of bully.”
Original singer Nobby Clark also reveals the band were urged to sleep with Radio 1 DJ Chris Denning, later jailed for abusing boys, to get airplay for a single.
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Clark says: “It might have been a hit but at what cost?
“I realised the Bay City Rollers were about Tam Paton. He didn’t care about the band.”
The group had 10 top 10 hits including Bye Bye Baby and Give a Little Love, which both reached No1 in 1975. They also topped the album chart with Rollin’ and Once Upon A Star and enjoyed global success.
But Paton’s achievements as a manager have been tainted by his horrific abuse of power.
Guitarist Pat McGlynn claimed Paton tried to rape him in Australia in 1977, but police could not gather enough evidence to prosecute.
The band changed members regularly with new teenage boys being brought in by Paton. Danish singer Gert Magnus was 16 when he was invited to stay in Paton’s home near Edinburgh and told he would be joining the band.
But he never got into the line-up and says he was cast out after two years when he refused to have sex with Paton or join parties at the house. He says paedophile TV star Jimmy Savile was among the guests.
In 1982, Paton was jailed for three years after admitting molesting 10 boys over a three-year period.
In 2004, he was fined £200,000 for drug dealing after police found large quantities of cannabis resin at his home. He died in 2009.
Les joined the band in 1973 and remained lead vocalist until 1978, wowing teenage girl fans with regular appearances on Top Of The Pops.
In 1975, as his fame continued to rise, he was fined £100 and banned from driving for a year after he killed an elderly neighbour in Edinburgh.
Secrets Of The Bay City Rollers airs at 9pm on Thursday, June 29, on ITV and ITVX.
If you've been the victim of sexual assault, you can access help and resources via www.rapecrisis.org.uk or calling the national telephone helpline on 0808 802 9999
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