Steve Dymond's fiancé has revealed that she had Jeremy Kyle's signature tattooed on her arm - after her lover's death.
Jane Callaghan, 51, appeared on The Jeremy Kyle Show with her partner Steve back in 2019 so that he could take a lie detector test to prove that he hadn't cheated on her.
Tragically, Steve took his own life shortly after taking part in the show. The Jeremy Kyle Show was axed by ITV soon afterwards and the episode never aired on TV.
However, his fiancée has said that she "feels sorry" for host Jeremy over the backlash he was hit with and doesn't blame him or the show for what happened.
A former Jeremy Kyle staff member - who remains anonymous in a new Channel 4 documentary - opens up about about Jane's connection to producers and says that she thinks of them as her friends.
"Jane has this bizarre connection with the producers that went down to Portsmouth," the ex-staff member claims. "I think she has this weird connection with that she owes them something.
"She doesn't see it like she thinks they're like her friends. She probably needs people. I don't think Jane has many genuine people that care about her and I find that really sad."
But after revealing a tattoo she got of Jeremy's signature on her arm, which she says she got after Steve's death, she says of the host: "I do feel sorry for him after the backlash he got.
"I don’t hate Jeremy Kyle, I don’t blame him for it... I can’t put the blame on someone when I’m partly to blame as well."
Former staff on the show also speak about what happened the morning the show was axed.
One says: "Everyone went in at 10 in the morning, because no one knew what was going on. And then it is like 'You're all getting made redundant'. And as soon as I show ended proof of it disappeared, all our accounts got shut down everything, even the signs in our office saying Jeremy Kyle was down within a day. It was like it didn't exist.
"They knew it was going to hit big."
Steve's landlady Shelley Thaxter, 58, also appears on the documentary and describes him as being "vulnerable" and that he told her that he and Jane would be appearing on the show.
"He did tell me he was going on the show and he said ‘It might be a way to prove to her that I hadn’t cheated on her’," she says. "I said ‘Actually I think you are being stupid... you might hear something on that show that you don’t want to hear’."
An anonymous whistleblower claims staff thought it was "hilarious" how much he wanted to appear on the show.
"We all thought it was hilarious how much he wanted to be on the show," she says. "I don't think they could have known how unwell he was before he came on the show. None of us were equipped to know that kind of thing."
While another former staff member adds: "People who were begging and desperate to be on the show... They were often the ones with mental health issues. We would have to go through the mental health check list with every guest to see if they are okay to go on the show. There was such pressure to book these that you would quite often lie or sometimes miss out important information or details."
Shelley also recalls Steve trying to contact his doctor because he was on medication for stress, and that he wasn't allowed to go on the show if he took this particular drug.
"He was literally running around trying to sort this out," she says
"It was what the man wanted," Shelley says. "He said he was getting back with Jane."
However, it was a very different story when Steve appeared on the show, she claims.
"Steve said when he was on the stage, Jeremy Kyle just laid into him," she says. "'You’re a liar. We have proved you have lied.' And then he couldn’t get off the stage. Like a cat caught in the headlights."
Quizzed on what happened the day of the filming, a male whistleblower says: "The producer said like it was an amazing show. 'This is one of the best shows I have produced in terms of drama and emotion.' I remember her saying ‘I feel really bad for the guy...he was a pathological liar I guess and he obviously just cannot help it. He is a lovely guy."
Shelley says: "He phoned me to say he was in the car coming back from Manchester and he said ‘I just wanted to take the morphine and throw myself out’. Those were his words. I said - don’t be stupid, get home and we will talk it over.
"But when he came back from the show that night he was broken. I have never seen a man like it. It was awful. All he kept saying was ‘Ive told so many lies, so many lies’ and we talked and we talked that night . I thought I might have got through to him but... obviously we all know what happened."
ITV said in a statement: "The Jeremy Kyle Show was broadcast for 14 years. In that time, more than 20,000 people took part in the show seeking help to resolve relationship issues, or to address drug or alcohol related problems. The central purpose of the show was conflict resolution, and the show achieved many positive outcomes where people were able to resolve personal problems.
"The Jeremy Kyle Show had extensive and detailed duty of care processes in place for contributors built up over 14 years. It had a dedicated guest welfare team of mental healthcare professionals with decades of experience in NHS mental healthcare, who were focused on the welfare of guests throughout the production process. Guests were supported by the programme and welfare teams prior to filming, throughout filming and after filming. Should they require ongoing help then appropriate solutions were found for them, which could include residential rehabilitation, counselling, anger management, family mediation, child access mediation or couples counselling.
"Due to the gravity of events in May 2019, namely the death of a guest a few days after taking part in the show, ITV decided to end production of the show. It would not be appropriate for ITV to comment further on that in advance of the inquest to be held later this month.
"ITV does not accept the central allegation of this programme of a “bad culture” within the production team. We note that the programme includes anonymous former production members claiming wrongdoing by themselves and others, without supporting evidence. ITV would never condone any of its production staff misleading or lying to guests. All guests on the Jeremy Kyle Show were aware of the nature of the show and the presenter’s style before taking part in recording. Most of those who applied to appear watched the show themselves. All guests gave their informed consent, in writing, to take part.
"Since 2018 ITV has taken significant steps in relation to its duty of care of participants. ITV issued detailed new guidance to all its producers on protecting participants in October 2019, which represents industry-leading good practice and now reflects the changes to the Broadcasting Code made by industry regulator Ofcom in 2021. ITV also ensures greater management oversight of participant welfare through a Duty of Care Board, and has created a Mental Health Advisory group involving mental health charities to advise ITV on its policies for staff and programme guests."
*The Jeremy Kyle Show: Death on Daytime airs Sunday and Monday at 9pm on Channel 4
If you're struggling and need help and support, the Samaritans operate a free helpline open 24/7 on 116 123. Alternatively, you can email jo@samaritans.org if you'd prefer to write down how you feel.
For information about eating disorders, UK charity BEAT can help.
