Jeremy Kyle Show bosses graded episodes A to D for conflict – and staff allegedly feared the axe if they produced a flop.
Whistleblowers who used to work on the series, deemed “cruel” by critics, claimed the marking created a “horrible” atmosphere and put them under “insane” pressure to generate on-screen clashes.
One of the show’s former producers said: “An ‘A’ show would be a high conflict show – not physical, but something where it goes off, there’s lots of storming around the studio, lots of heightened emotions, lots of shouting… when they come on and they are immediately kicking off.
“A ‘D’ would be low energy, low conflict, poor talkers who couldn’t really express what they were trying to say.”
(Image: ITV)
A fellow former staffer said stories that ran longer or involved multiple lie detector tests would score higher.
Those who got the most A’s would get champagne, prestige and job security.
Those who didn’t feared the sack.
The show was axed in 2019 after the suspected suicide of guest Steve Dymond.
(Image: ITV)
The construction worker, 63, was found dead from a morphine overdose in his home in Portsmouth, Hants, a week after flunking one of the show’s polygraphs.
Kyle has been declared an “interested party” at Steve’s inquest, due to take place in July. In the episode, which has never aired, Kyle branded him a “serial liar”.
Last night ITV said: “We have introduced our own Duty of Care charter and published guidance to producers.”
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The Jeremy Kyle Show premiered back in 2005, running for 17 seasons and featuring over 3,000 episodes.
Two years after it launched, The Jeremy Kyle Show was nominated for the dong for “Most Popular Factual Programme” at the NTAs, though it lost out to Top Gear.
It inspired a US spin-off by the same name, which ran for two years before it was cancelled by network bosses due to lower than expected ratings in 2013.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
