After the cancellation of Jeremy Kyle, should Love Island be next?

Scarlett Welch discusses whether Love Island should be cancelled due to the detrimental mental health effects caused by the show

Scarlett Welch
11th December 2020
Credit: IMDb

In 2019, following the tragic death of a guest, The Jeremy Kyle Show was permanently cancelled. 

The guest took part in a filmed, but not yet released, episode where he failed a lie-detector test which resulted in his relationship ending. Shortly before the episode was due to air, guest Steve Dymond was found dead. Almost immediately after, the show was taken off the air. 

This was a very immediate decision, unsurprising due to the tragic nature of Dymond’s death. But since the show’s cancellation, many spectators have questioned why Love Island is still on air, despite the death of not one but two previous contestants. 

Mike Thalassitis and Sophie Gradon are two previous Love Island contestants, both of whom committed suicide less than two years after they appeared on the show in their respective series. 

Love Island and its aftermath were detrimental to the mental health of these contestants

Love Island has been very controversial amongst its success. Credit: IMDb

Whilst it is difficult to determine the exact mindset of each individual, it is highly likely that Love Island and its aftermath were detrimental to the mental health of these contestants. Being catapulted into fame from complete anonymity, a type of fame that is very difficult to sustain for the majority of reality stars. It is just not something that humans are built for. 

On a surface level, it is easy to compare these two shows. Plainly, both have contributed to the deaths of those who have appeared on the show, and undoubtedly caused mental health struggles for many more. But are they equally to blame?

The Jeremy Kyle Show consisted of little more than mocking the less fortunate. People had their secrets exposed on television, and whilst the show offered subsequent counselling you can easily see how it could destroy lives. If anything, it's a wonder that it took this long for producers to cancel it. 

Whilst life seems idyllic for the islanders, their mental health can be quickly damaged by the swarm of hate comments

On the other hand, Love Island seems as though it transforms lives for the better, which in some ways it probably does. However, a more covert evil is at play here. Whilst life seems idyllic for the islanders, their mental health can be quickly damaged by the swarm of hate comments waiting for them as soon as they leave the island. 

The Jeremy Kyle Show has been cancelled since the tragic incident. Credit: IMDb

The trouble is, it’s not necessarily the fault of producers that ex-islanders suffer so much with their mental health, whereas The Jeremy Kyle Show is more directly at fault. 

Even if cancelling Love Island is not the right course of action, ITV certainly needs to act fast to improve their support network, before the next batch of islanders fall prey to the same troubles.

And in the future, let's aim to solve the blatant issues in media before they result in death.

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