It’s been three years since The Jeremy Kyle Show was cancelled, following the death of one of its former participants, Steve Dymond, who died of a morphine overdose and a heart problem in a suspected suicide just 10 days after filming an episode for the show, which was never aired.
In a new Channel 4 documentary, titled Jeremy Kyle Show: Death on Daytime, four former employees have come forward to talk about their experience working on the show.
And in episode 1, which will air on Sunday 13th March, one employee alleges that participants were misled by staff to believe they had to compete for a spot at a rehab centre, so that they would act up for the cameras and produce more “emotional” scenes.
The former employees agreed to tell their stories, but only if their names were kept anonymous and their words were delivered by an actor.
Speaking to the camera, the actor stated: “The lie came when you were in the studio. You would go into the corridor with them, and that’s when the lie would come.
“You’d tell the addicts and their families that there’s three other families going on the stage, it’s a fight for that one bed – Jeremy is going to pick who he wants, so you need to get out there and say what you need to say. It was to get more emotion on the stage.”
Asked whether their bosses knew about these lies, the actor replied: “Yeah.”
Another former staff member added: “We were always acting, and you were always winding people up. You were wound up yourselves.
“It was insane and what was awful is when you would have a more normal family, you would always s**t yourself because you’d be under this impression that the working class people weren’t as clever and they wouldn’t question you.”
In another scene, Dominique, the mother of Kristie Bishop – who took part in the show in 2018 and died from a drug overdose the year later – shared her experience, saying: “To think that we had to compete with another family, it was soul-destroying.”
The documentary will air across two nights on Channel 4, and includes interviews from former staff members, participants and family members of people who appeared on the show.
In response to the claims in the documentary, ITV said in a statement: “The Jeremy Kyle Show was broadcast for 14 years. In that time, more than 20,000 people took part in the show seeking help to resolve relationship issues, or to address drug or alcohol related problems. The central purpose of the show was conflict resolution, and the show achieved many positive outcomes where people were able to resolve personal problems.
“The Jeremy Kyle Show had extensive and detailed duty of care processes in place for contributors built up over 14 years. It had a dedicated guest welfare team of mental healthcare professionals with decades of experience in NHS mental healthcare, who were focused on the welfare of guests throughout the production process.
“Guests were supported by the programme and welfare teams prior to filming, throughout filming and after filming. Should they require ongoing help then appropriate solutions were found for them, which could include residential rehabilitation, counselling, anger management, family mediation, child access mediation or couples counselling.
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“Due to the gravity of events in May 2019, namely the death of a guest a few days after taking part in the show, ITV decided to end production of the show. It would not be appropriate for ITV to comment further on that in advance of the inquest to be held later this month.
“ITV does not accept the central allegation of this programme of a ‘bad culture’ within the production team. We note that the programme includes anonymous former production members claiming wrongdoing by themselves and others, without supporting evidence. ITV would never condone any of its production staff misleading or lying to guests.
“All guests on the Jeremy Kyle Show were aware of the nature of the show and the presenter’s style before taking part in recording. Most of those who applied to appear watched the show themselves. All guests gave their informed consent, in writing, to take part.
“Since 2018 ITV has taken significant steps in relation to its duty of care of participants. ITV issued detailed new guidance to all its producers on protecting participants in October 2019, which represents industry-leading good practice and now reflects the changes to the Broadcasting Code made by industry regulator Ofcom in 2021.
“ITV also ensures greater management oversight of participant welfare through a Duty of Care Board, and has created a Mental Health Advisory group involving mental health charities to advise ITV on its policies for staff and programme guests.”
RadioTimes.com has reached out to Jeremy Kyle about the claims, but at the time of going to press, has not received a response.
The Samaritans are available 24/7 if you need to talk. You can contact them for free by calling 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org or head to the website to find your nearest branch.
Jeremy Kyle Show – Death on Daytime airs on Channel 4 on Sunday 13th March and Monday 14th March at 9pm. For something else, visit our TV Guide our check out dedicated Documentaries hub.
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