21-year-old gay man who appeared on Jeremy Kyle show driven to suicide
A gay man killed himself after appearing on ITV1’s The Jeremy Kyle Show.
Roger Irons, 21, was found hanging from a tree in woodland on 2nd August last year after running out of a party to celebrate his sister Susan’s 18th birthday.
She told the inquest into his death in Truro: “He was crying and very emotional. He kissed me on the cheek and said, “I can’t take it any more” and ran off.”
Irons, from Falmouth in Cornwall, appeared on Jeremy Kyle’s daytime show in October 2007 with his partner Matthew Millington, 26.
They had formed a civil partnership in 2006.
After taking on the advice given on the show Millington claimed that the relationship had improved dramatically and said: “Roger was bubbly and a happy, easy going person but he did get a lot of abuse about being gay.”
Irons had reportedly become depressed about repeated taunts about his homosexuality. His sister Lisa told the inquest: “People being homophobic hurt him a lot. It really got to him and eventually it boiled over.”
He had also been diagnosed with epilepsy which was controlled using medication.
A verdict of suicide was recorded.