Jeremy Kyle 'called guest serial liar' before death, says coroner
ITV presenter Jeremy Kyle called a show guest who later died a "serial liar", a coroner revealed in a written ruling.
The body of Steve Dymond was found at his home last May, days after he took a lie-detector test on the show. Hampshire coroner Jason Pegg's written comments were made in July, but have been released following a request from the Press Association. They follow a preliminary hearing at which the coroner said Mr Kyle would be an "interested person" in the inquest. During the hearing on Friday, Mr Pegg said the presenter "may have caused or contributed" to Mr Dymond's death. Mr Dymond died of a morphine overdose and a heart problem at his home in Portsmouth on 9 May 2019. Seven days earlier he took a lie detector test on the programme, which was not aired, to show whether he had cheated on his ex-fiancee. When he failed the test he became "distressed", the hearing was told. The show was axed shortly after his death. In his ruling, Mr Pegg said he had viewed The Jeremy Kyle Show episode featuring Mr Dymond. "In that footage it is apparent that Jeremy Kyle was aware that the deceased had previously been unable to appear on The Jeremy Kyle Show having been diagnosed with depression, for which the deceased had been prescribed anti-depressant medication," he said. "After the lie detector results the deceased looked visibly upset. "Jeremy Kyle adopted an approach where he called the deceased a 'serial liar'; that he 'would not trust him with a chocolate button'; and made a comment, 'Has anyone got a shovel?'." The written comments also quoted Mr Dymond's son, Carl Woolley. He said his father "had been humiliated, taken for a mug and pounced on by the presenter". Lawyers for Mr Kyle and ITV argued during the preliminary hearing that Mr Dymond's "upsetting experience" on the show was "established fact" and the scope of the inquest should not be a "detailed top to bottom inquiry into the Jeremy Kyle Show, its selection, treatment and aftercare of participants". The full inquest, which is expected to last about a week, is not expected to be held before May next year.