Guest on Jeremy Kyle show claims he 'was ordered to change into a tracksuit before filming' - and then called an 'ex-drug dealer in a tracksuit' by host

  • Gareth Evans, 27, said he arrived for filming wearing smart jumper
  • But he was told to change it for tracksuit top as it had a logo showing
  • Jeremy Kyle ripped into outfit, branding him 'a drug dealer in a tracksuit'
  • Also called 'scum' and told to 'shut up' by Kyle during show

By Chris Pleasance for MailOnline

Published: | Updated:

A former drug dealer who went on The Jeremy Kyle Show to have a paternity test has accused producers of forcing him to wear a tracksuit before the show's host ripped into him over the outfit.

Gareth Evans, 27, was dubbed an 'ex-drug dealer in a tracksuit' by Kyle, told to 'shut up' and called 'scum' after going on the show to find out if he was the real father of nine-month-old baby Damien.

Girlfriend Charmaine Wright, 21, added that the show's staff had been manipulative, 'egging' the pair on before the cameras started rolling.

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Mr Evans said he turned up to the studio wearing a smart jumper, but was told by Kyle's team to take it off and put on a tracksuit top - moments before the host attacked him for wearing it

Mr Evans said he turned up to the studio wearing a smart jumper, but was told by Kyle's team to take it off and put on a tracksuit top - moments before the host attacked him for wearing it

Gareth Evans, 27, said he was left feeling manipulated and humiliated after going on Jeremy Kyle with girlfriend Charmaine Wright, 21, to prove nine-month-old Damien is his son 

Gareth Evans, 27, said he was left feeling manipulated and humiliated after going on Jeremy Kyle with girlfriend Charmaine Wright, 21, to prove nine-month-old Damien is his son 

She also said Kyle turned the audience against them, saying that Mr Evans was 'not a good dad' and asking them to 'show the world how you welcome a drug dealer to my stage' when he walked out in front of the cameras.

When Miss Wright revealed Mr Evans had been a drug dealer Kyle then gloated: 'I love mornings like this.'

The DNA test proved Mr Evans is Damien's father, and he has vowed to be a good parent to his son

The DNA test proved Mr Evans is Damien's father, and he has vowed to be a good parent to his son

The episode, called 'I'll prove my drug dealing ex is the father to my baby', aired on January 26.

The troubled couple, who have been together nearly three years, went on the ITV show after baby Damien was born with ginger hair, leading Gareth to think he might not be his.

Mr Evans, from Barnstaple, Devon, says he turned up to the studios dressed in a smart Officers Club jumper, but was told he would have to remove it because it had a logo showing.

Instead the production team told him he would have to change into a tracksuit, before Kyle attacked him over the clothing.

Mr Evans said: 'He slated me for the tracksuit but it was his tracksuit so he slated himself.

'I wanted to go on the show to be sure Damien was mine, but we 100 per cent regret it. I only went on the show for my son.'

DNA tests eventually proved that Damien was Mr Evans' son, and he has vowed to be a good father to the boy. 

The episode was available to view this morning via streaming service ITV Player, but has since been removed.

MailOnline has made several attempts to contact The Jeremy Kyle Show and ITV for comment, but has so far not received a response. 

SHOW GAVE AN ALCOHOLIC GUEST BEER 'TO STIR HIM UP FOR A FIGHT'

The incident is not the first time The Jeremy Kyle Show has been accused of influencing how guests appear on the programme.

In 2007 the show came under fire after an alcoholic who appeared on the show claimed he had been plied with lager to 'stir him up for a fight'.

Peter Davies, an ex-heroin addict, was a guest on the show as he tried to find out why his father cut him out of his will.

'They basically wanted me to make a fool of myself - and that's exactly what I did,' he told The Sun.

'I was half-cut by the time I went on stage. They knew I was an alcoholic and they should never have given me a drink.'

A spokesman for the show said at the time: 'Peter was not encouraged to drink and was not given four or five cans of lager as he claims. 

Fazakerly Hospital banned the show from its television screens in 2009

Fazakerly Hospital banned the show from its television screens in 2009

'He was given two small cups of weak lager over a two-and-a-half-hour period to counteract alcohol withdrawal symptoms.'

Later that year a former producer on the show told the Guardian that staff wind up guests 'like a coiled spring' before they take to the stage.

Charlotte Scott said the production team would 'talk up' guests, giving them advice on what to say and how to be confrontational when they are questioned by Kyle.

A spokeswoman for ITV said: 'We do not seek to "wind up" guests.'

In 2009 the show was banned from being shown at Fazakerley Hospital, in Liverpool, after bosses decided it was upsetting patients.

The hospital switched from ITV to BBC One after a number of complaints about the show from people in the waiting room. 

A spokeswoman for The Jeremy Kyle Show said many patients would be disappointed by the hospital's edict.

'It is the hospital's decision at the end of the day,' she added.

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