Inquest hears claim Jeremy Kyle asked ITV audience to 'boo' Steve Dymond as heart-breaking details emerge
Steve Dymond, who appeared on The Jeremy Kyle Show, felt he was 'thrown under the bus', his son Carl Woolley told an inquest into his death
The Jeremy Kyle Show guest Steve Dymond's relatives have opened up about his heart-breaking final days.
An inquest has heard that the 63-year-old died of an overdose of morphine and a heart problem, The Mirror reports. Resuming the hearing at Winchester Coroner's Court, coroner Jason Pegg said the 63-year-old was found dead at his home in Grafton Street, Portsmouth, Hampshire, on May 9 2019. Mr Pegg told the hearing: "At the heart of this inquest is the family of Steve Dymond."
He added that the purpose of the hearing was not to "apportion civil or criminal liability" to any person involved. Rachel Spearing, counsel to the inquest, told the court that the proceedings will delve into the events between March 14 and May 9, 2019 – leading up to Steve's death.
READ MORE - Inquest into death of Jeremy Kyle Show guest Steve Dymond pushed back at family's request
READ MORE - Jeremy Kyle guest Steve Dymond's heartbreaking final texts seen in new documentary
The inquest will hear evidence relating to Dymond's interactions with his GP, assessment of his appearance on The Jeremy Kyle Show and the aftercare he received from the former programme, Spearing said. She went on to explain that the inquest will also hear about Steve's "reaction to the lie detector test" he took on the show.
Spearing told the inquest that post-mortem examination found a "potentially fatal level" of morphine in Dymond's blood. The post-mortem also discovered evidence of left ventricular hypertrophy in his heart. Spearing added: "The conclusion was that both left ventricular hypertrophy and morphine levels are independently capable of causing Mr Dymond's death but in this case, a combination of the two factors had led to his death."
Speaking at the inquest, Mr Dymond's son, Carl Woolley said his late father had been "very upset" following the recording of the ITV morning programme. Woolley and Dymond were not in contact but his uncle, Leslie Dymond had rang him to explain his dad was "very down". The inquest heard that Steve had told his brother Leslie that Jeremy had been "in his face" as the crowd were "heckling him". In a statement read in court, Leslie said: "Throughout my life I have looked up to my older brother. We had never talked about the Jeremy Kyle Show or circumstances with his partner involving any plan to take part.
"On May 2, 2019 whilst walking my dog in the late afternoon, I was called by my brother out of the blue. He was clearly very distressed and I was very surprised and worried when he told me that he was in a taxi travelling home from the Jeremy Kyle Show having taken part, and that he had endured a terrible time. He sounded completely broken and frightened and he told me he could not go on living.
"We spoke for about 15 minutes as I tried to talk him out of the thoughts of ending his life, but he terminated the call giving the taxi environment as the reason. I was extremely worried about Stephen and called him from home as soon as I estimated he had reached his lodgings.
"The call lasted for about an hour during which time he went on in tears about failing the lie detector test and that he was a failure. I believe I had managed to calm him down a little by saying that it is all a load of nonsense." He reached out to Steve's son, Carl. Leslie added: "Stephen and I had multiple conversations over the next few days and I think we spoke at least four times every day from May 2 to May 6, as well as exchanging text messages.
"He often repeated what had happened so I can be completely sure what he said. He recalled the lie detector test he had done but was adamant that he had not cheated on his partner. Stephen said he was thrown by questions about his past relationships, as he did not expect them, as that part of his life had never been disclosed to anyone else.
"He did tell me that the audience had booed him, that the presenter, Jeremy Kyle, had been in his face and that he had been followed when he left the stage with cameras and microphones being put in his face. He told me he was jeered and called a failure by the presenter. He was mostly very distressed and consumed by what had happened on the show.
"He repeated that he had the result of the lie detector test which he did not agree with pushed in his face and said he was called a traitor, with the presenter and the audience all heckling him. Stephen told me he had been at the point of collapsing at the studio but he was still heckled. He mentioned trying to leave via a side door but that it was locked and so he could not escape the jeering. He told me he had been on his hands and knees as he thought he was going to pass out from fear and stress. It was like he had been brainwashed by all the aggressive behaviour and I kept trying to tell him it was rubbish and he should get on with his life, not letting this drag him down.
"He said he was worthless and that he could not face life any more. We did talk about what support Stephen was getting from the show and he told me he was supposed to get it but nothing had been arranged. I tried to convince Stephen to see his doctor or visit a counsellor as it was clear to me that he was not coping at all and although at times I thought I was getting somewhere, he clearly needed professional help, but the reality was this was a long Bank Holiday weekend.
"He told me he had contacted the show since the filming but that he had not heard anything about help being provided. I was horrified to hear what had happened to Stephen and I had never heard him talk this way or be so disturbed by anything before. 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."
Carl told the inquest that during a conversation, Steve said that Mr Kyle had "egged on" the audience to "boo him" and he was "cast as a liar." He added that his dad had informed him that the "lie detector had cast him as a liar, he said to me he wasn't lying". Carl continued: "He was telling the truth, he was not lying and telling the truth and asking why it said he had lied."
He said that Steve "was very upset saying he was being called a liar, everyone had jumped on him, (he was) not with it at all." When asked by Ms Spearing about who had "jumped on him", Mr Woolley told the inquest: "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."
During the inquest, those in court heard extracts from a note written by Steve Dymond for his son Carl. 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. He knows sorry isn't enough and he says that: 'I just don't want to have to be here no more. My life feels empty without Jane. I just loved her so much'."
Dymond had appeared on The Jeremy Kyle Show and took a lie detector test after he was accused of cheating on his former fiancée, Jane Callaghan. Continuing to reflect on extracts from the letter, Spearing said: "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'."
Carl said his dad had been "very upset" after his time on the show and would call him several times each day. "He was ok at some points but very down," he commented. Carl stated that he had encouraged his father to continue to use aftercare from ITV, explaining: "He told me he was getting support and aftercare from the (Jeremy Kyle) Show's counsellors, I explained to him he needed to get in contact with them and keep ringing them to get the aftercare that he needed.
"He told me had rang and I said he needed to get some help – 'Ring the show, ring the show'." The last time Steve tried to contact his son, it was a missed call on his phone. Carl claims his dad felt as though he had been "thrown under a bus". Carl said: "My father was crying as he told me he had been on The Jeremy Kyle Show and that he had been deemed a liar right from the start. He said he had been 'taken for a mug' and 'pounced on' by the presenter.
"I said to him at one point, 'what did you expect going on a show like that?' and he said to me that he hadn't realised he would be made a mockery of. He told me he was 'made out to be a baddie'… and that no one had given him any chance to put his point across, and that Jeremy Kyle was constantly 'on him'. He said he felt he 'was thrown under a bus'." Carl said he struggled to understand what his late dad was saying on the phone during one conversation as he was "Crying and speaking so manically".
Gerald Brierley, Mr Dymond's cousin, said in a statement that he had told Leslie he would act on his behalf when dealing with all affairs connected to and subsequent to the death in return for a "reward" by way of "any money he might obtain from ITV". Mr Brierley said he would deal with lawyers, the coroner's court, and the press in return for a 'potential monetary reward for all the hard work that I was doing'.
He said he hoped for the end of 'TV trash' and hoped that Ofcom would put their 'foot down'.
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