A JEREMY Kyle show guest took his own life after the audience were “egged on” to boo him when he failed a lie detector, an inquest heard.
Steve Dymond, 63, was discovered dead at his home in Portsmouth, Hampshire, a week after filming the ITV show in May 2019.
He had failed a lie detector test after trying to prove he hadn’t cheated on his ex-fiancee Jane Callaghan.
An inquest heard today how Steve called his son Carl Woolley on the day of filming and was “very upset”.
Steve claimed he had been “thrown under a bus” and was not given the chance to get his point across.
Carl told Winchester Coroner’s Court: “Jeremy Kyle had got the crowd to egg on, to boo at him and stuff, he was cast as the liar before he had even spoken.”
He also told how his dad was adamant he had been telling the truth when he took the lie detector test on the show.
Carl said his dad remained upset in the days that followed and would call him up to six times a day.
As a result, he begged his dad to continue getting after-care support from ITV.
Carl explained: “He told me he was getting support and after-care from the show’s counsellors, I explained to him he needed to get in contact with them and keep ringing them to get the after-care that he needed.
“He told me he had rang and I said he needed to get some help – ‘Ring the show, ring the show’.”
Tragically, Carl told the inquest that the last time his dad tried to make contact was a missed call on his phone.
Steve died from combination of an overdose and left ventricular hypertrophy – thickening of the heart – on May 9, 2019.
He is suspected of taking his own life and police did not treat his death as suspicious.
The court was told he left a note for his son, who had not been in contact with his dad prior to the phone call on the day of filming.
Reading extracts to Carl, inquest counsel Rachel Spearing said: “In the bottom paragraph he says sorry to you, he asks you not to be mad with him and he knows that you will be but he doesn’t know what to say to you.”
She continued: “He expresses pride in you and comments upon your skills as a dad.
“He says: ‘I never ever cheated on Jane and that is what is tearing me to pieces and everyone thinks I am but I’m not a cheat. But I did tell her lies and I lied so much to Jane and that is why she didn’t believe me’.”
Steve’s brother Leslie Dymond told how his brother was “consumed” by what happened on the show and had never heard him “so disturbed” by anything before.
He added: “He kept saying he could ‘not go on’ because of what had happened and although I spent ages trying to get him out of these thoughts, as did his son Carl, I knew when he did not reply to my messages that he had probably died.”
Leslie also paid tribute to “brave” Steve, who worked for the RNLI.
He said: “It was not an easy job… but Stephen showed up every single time.
“He was so dedicated to his role.”
Coroner Jason Pegg told the hearing that the purpose of the inquest was not to “apportion civil or criminal liability” to any person involved.
The hearing continues.
If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this article, please call the Samaritans for free on 116123.
