UK talk show suspended after guest’s reported suicide
All episodes of a popular British talk show have been pulled from the internet and filming has been suspended after the reported suicide of a former guest Tuesday.
Broadcaster ITV pulled its most popular daytime show “The Jeremy Kyle Show” off air indefinitely following the death of 63-year-old Steve Dymond, a week after he appeared on an episode.
Dymond failed a lie-detector test taken on the show to convince his fiancee he had not cheated on her, leading to the couple splitting up, The Sun newspaper reported.
The show has been the focus of criticism over its confrontational style, which often pits romantic rivals against each other and has previously descended into violence.
Conservative MP Charles Walker told the Daily Mail that ITV “would be best advised just to stop” the show permanently.
“It’s a very, very unattractive TV show and I’m surprised it’s gone on so long,” he added.
Manchester judge Alan Berg described the show in 2007 as a “morbid and depressing display of dysfunctional people whose lives are in turmoil,” calling it “human bear-baiting.”
ITV wiped all episodes from its on-demand service the ITV Hub, and episodes will not air on ITV2.
The show, which attracts around one million viewers per episode, is hosted by former insurance salesman Kyle and has run since 2005.
The mental health consequences of reality TV shows has been in the spotlight in Britain following the deaths of two contestants on hit show “Love Island”.
Sophie Gradon and Mike Thalassitis were both found hanged in separate incidents.
