Jimmy Savile and police 'crony' Mick Starkey pictured together Mick Starkey, 61, drove Savile's Rolls-Royce and attended the DJ's 'Friday Morning Club' He apparently contacted Surrey Police before they interviewed star in 2009 IPCC has launched an investigation into the allegations against ex-officer A former policeman alleged to have intervened on behalf of Jimmy Savile before he was interviewed over sexual assault claims has been revealed as a member of the shamed DJ's 'Friday Morning Club'. Mick Starkey, 61, was apparently known as Savile's 'bodyguard' and drove the star around in a Rolls-Royce. He is now being investigated over claims he contacted Surrey Police before they interviewed Savile in 2009 and 'acted on behalf' of the DJ. Claims: Former policeman Mick Starkey, left, was apparently close to Jimmy Savile and frequently visited his home Starkey, who was an inspector with West Yorkshire Police at the time of the alleged incident, has been pictured with Savile grinning next to a luxury car. He has previously been named as a key member of the 'Friday Morning Club', a group of police officers and others who would gather at Savile's flat in Leeds on a weekly basis. This week it emerged that Starkey told Surrey Police that he knew the DJ 'personally' and offered to put Savile in touch with them. Officers interviewed Savile in October 2009 after several young girls came forward claiming they had been abused by the broadcaster. Close: Starkey drove the DJ's silver Rolls-Royce and was apparently known as his 'bodyguard' Investigation: Starkey is at the centre of a probe by the IPCC over claims he acted on Savile's behalf When the transcript of the interview was made public this week it sparked anger as detectives appeared to adopt a kid-glove approach to the celebrity suspect. Savile boasted of his 'collection' of police contacts in Leeds, and said that he passed on to officers letters from blackmailers claiming to have been assaulted by him. "I have up in Yorkshire, where I live in Leeds, a collection of senior police persons who come to see me socially, but I give them all my weirdo letters," he said. Starkey, referred to as 'Inspector 5' in official reports, has refused to comment on his links to Savile. In a biography of the star published last year, the officer was quoted as saying: 'I feel privileged to have known the real Jimmy. It amuses me when I read reports saying he was a loner with few friends. He was popular. Shamed: Savile abused hundreds of young girls over a period of decades but never faced justice Interview: The transcript of Surrey Police's interview with Savile in 2009 was released this week A spokesman for the Independent Police Complaints Commission said this week: "The Commission has begun an independent investigation in relation to the alleged actions of a former inspector with West Yorkshire Police. This week an unnamed officer claimed that he caught Savile seducing a 15-year-old girl but was told not to pursue the matter. The policeman has been urged to come forward by investigators.