The Week in Review: Jimmy Savile still the stuff of nightmares for the BBC

The corridors of the BBC, and particularly the office of its new director-general George Entwistle, have been haunted by the ghost of Jimmy Savile this week. Revelations about his behaviour have shocked and appalled – and anger about the BBC's apparent cover-up have projected the anger at the dead man's activities on to existing scapegoats. So when Entwistle appeared before MPs on Tuesday, the entire country was watching. politics.co.uk was in the room, able to watch Entwistle trying hard to appear unflappable, but making several embarrassing slips. He ended up eventually being laughed at openly by MPs and the public gallery. The BBC's reputation is suffering a severe battering. It isn't pretty, and it doesn't look like going away in a hurry.

We're based in Westminster, but every so often the Scottish government attracts attention to itself through one means or another. The Scottish National party has been having a torrid time of it since their party conference last week. Two of its MSPs defected in protest over the party's change in policy towards supporting Nato membership. First minister Alex Salmond was effectively caught lying over whether he has sought legal advice about Scotland adopting the euro in the event of independence. Gay marriage is also tearing the party apart.

Neither the BBC nor the Scottish government, you will note, are the British government. We've grown so used to David Cameron and co having bad weeks that the idea of them getting through seven days without some fresh calamity befalling them seems laughable. OK, so there was the badger cull to add to the growing list of U-turns. But, apart from that very specific exception, this was a week of "good news", as promised by the prime minister in PMQs. On Thursday the UK's economy was confirmed as having officially emerged from the double-dip recession, prompting jubilation on all sides. Apart from at politics.co.uk towers; having taken the trouble of speaking to some economists, it's very clear that the optimism ministers are hoping to instil in consumers' heads is far from justified.

This was also a week for controversy. Our most-read story of the week was a straight write-up of Tom Watson's allegations in PMQs – possibly relating to Margaret Thatcher's time in power. The headline Downing Street linked to 'paedophile ring' might have had something to do with it. We've also been getting a lot of attention for our Nadine Dorries interview, in which she came up with four bona fide stories. She just has to open her mouth and something controversial comes out. Which works out just fine for us.