'Insufficient evidence' that being on Kyle show led to death - coroner

An inquest into the death of a man who killed himself a week after appearing on The Jeremy Kyle Show has found "insufficient evidence" to rule that participating in the programme caused his death.

- Sammy Gecsoyler

Steve Dymond, 63, from Portsmouth, Hampshire, is thought to have ended his life seven days after filming for the ITV show in May 2019.

His death prompted the cancellation of the programme after 14 years on air and instigated a parliamentary inquiry into the broadcaster's treatment of reality show contestants.

Unaired footage released last week showed a distraught Dymond facing boos from the audience after failing a lie detector test to determine whether he had cheated on his partner, Jane Callaghan. A senior producer on the show admitted the tests had an accuracy rate of "between 60-96%".

Ruling out his treatment by The Jeremy Kyle Show as a contributory factor in his death, the Hampshire coroner, Jason Pegg, said: "There is insufficient evidence for me to be satisfied that this was the direct cause of Steve's death," adding there was "no causal link" between his appearance on the show and his death.