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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To wonder why all the people on Jeremy Kyle are so strange.

203 replies

rainydaysarebad · 09/05/2012 23:04

I'm no super model myself, but why do these people have bad teeth, bad skin, bad hair, loopy eyes like they're not with it? Many a time I have heard some of them refer to their partners bad hygiene too. They talk roughly and the women wear clothes that are too tight for them.

Ive been at home alot recently and am catching episodes of it all day. I am thoroughly shocked to say the least. Are these people really a true portrait of Britain's working class? I know it's stupid TV, but I am genuinely intrigued by these people and often sit mouth wide open at the stupid things they come out with and their stories in general.

OP posts:
xxmush1983xx · 10/05/2012 10:49

Agree that it's not about access to education, well school anyway. But what if the parents don't take their children. I maybe did sound a bit judgey on my last post but the 7 y old kid next door never goes to school because her mum can't get out of bed, there are dangerous dogs frequently running about the street, kids run wild, kids pushing their younger siblings about in a buggy because their parents are drinking and there are addicts who do their deals in the street in broad daylight. I understand that everyone has problems but I'm also trying to raise my 2 DCs to be decent human beings so reserve the right to be a bit judgemental when showing my kids right from wrong. I see myself as working class btw

Codandchops · 10/05/2012 10:53

My friend was seriously sexually abused as a child and has real issues with dental stuff due to feeling trapped and overcrowded.Sad

HillyWallaby · 10/05/2012 11:07

No, Ello I know it's not. Not for people who have beenin your situation. I know what you are saying.

2wwmadness · 10/05/2012 11:13

Dh served jezza the other week. High end retail. Spend 3k on clothes. He's getting paid! Dh said he's short

merrymouse · 10/05/2012 11:14

"I am thoroughly shocked to say the least."

I recommend a bit of Dickens. There have always been intelligent, wise people who happen to come from poor and difficult back grounds, and there have always been people who have no money and no coping skills. Sadly there have also always been freak shows, and Jeremy Kyle is one of them.

I understand there are also programmes about rich people who are a few bricks short of a load - "Made in Chelsea"?

ShirleyKnot · 10/05/2012 12:30

Dental work - Dentist who are treating NHS patients tend to pull teeth out rather than actually saving them - it costs less. Once you come out of being a full NHS patient the costs are EYE WATERING if you are skint.

University - Many, MANY children from the lowest income families will be unable to afford to go to university. It's not just the tuition fees, it's the housing, the supplies, the books, the EVERYTHING. It's much cheaper for an 18 year old to stay at home than to have to pay to go to University.

ShirleyKnot · 10/05/2012 12:33

Oh and I see that the conversation about grants and burseries is going on - can anyone provide links for the sort of money a grant would be to study...oh I dunno, architecture let's say, please?

I'd be very interested in the actual sums involved, the actual amounts of grants and the level of income required.

NagooIsBuildingAnArk · 10/05/2012 12:38

producer of JK article

they get their beer and cigarettes as payment apparently.

NagooIsBuildingAnArk · 10/05/2012 12:43

Shirley I'd say a lot of it is the level of debt you have to be prepared to take on. If you mum earns £10K a year it's a bit harder to accept a debt level of £75K than if your parents have an income of £200K, isn't it?

Mrsrobertduvall · 10/05/2012 12:46

I have never seen a black or Asian person on the show.

NaughtyElephantsSquirtWater · 10/05/2012 12:47

Hilly the student loan thing is a whole other thread. DP is in final year of uni, most friends are at uni as we are all 21 and I know a lot of parents (some very well off) have refused to help out financially.

ImperialBlether · 10/05/2012 12:48

I teach A levels in one of the poorest areas of Britain. Many students don't have anyone working in the family. When they apply to university, they hit problem after problem. It's about £22 to apply to UCAS. That's a hell of a percentage of a weekly budget, particularly now there's no EMA.

They can't go to university in another city, no matter how much they want to and no matter how much there's a more suitable course there. You have to pay a couple of hundred pounds deposit for housing at the very minimum. I've had to pay £500 down before term starts quite often for my children. Then how would you get there? If you've rarely been out of the area before and have no car, how would you transport everything you need? And how would you buy everything you need? Kettles, irons, spare bedding etc all cost money. They know that better than us and don't even consider going away.

Hownoobrooncoo · 10/05/2012 12:58

It's time vile Jezza had a another envelope thrown at him, big tosser of a coward.

JustOneMoreGlass · 10/05/2012 13:16

Not everything is as it seems, i feel very embarassed typing this but my parents were very neglectful, never ever owned a toothbrush or went to the dentist, ate whatever/whenever we could (mostly shite) My teeth were fucked by the time i left school..when i tried to get help was the time thats dentists were shutting and no one was accepting Nhs. Now i feel utter shame and dread going (suffer anxiety/depression too) I dont leave the house other than school run..thats it :( Maybe i should apply to JK eh..i would fit right in!

ShirleyKnot · 10/05/2012 14:30

You'll be alright justonemoreglass, I also have dental phobia and the most genetically dreadful teeth EVER!

I've been undergoing some treatment and it DOES get easier.

HillyWallaby · 10/05/2012 14:48

Yes it is a whole other thread, I agree so I won't get dragged into it any further, but it did start off at least, a bit relevant to this thread, as people were saying that poor kids do not have access to the same education as MC ones. Sorry it has turned into a bit of a hijack. Confused

HillyWallaby · 10/05/2012 15:07

But for Shirl here

In a nutshell, the loan will be for the full amount of fees up to £9k, the maintenance loan will be £5,500 for outside London, £7600 for inside London and £4375 for those who study and still live at home. That's for everyone.

Students from families with an income below £25K get a non-repayable grant of £3250, then on a sliding scale for people with a household income up to £46k, down to £50.

Plus there are various scholarships and bursary funds that are awarded to some -typically they were around £1000 on average in 2010, but I cannot find my source for that any more.

So a student studying outside London with no financial support from parents whatsoever will have £8750 to live off, before bursaries (if they got one) and £5500 of that is repayable after they start earning £21k or more. But only if they come from one of the lowest income families. A 'better off' child with no family financial support whatsoever (and it happens) has only £5500 to live off and they pay it all back.

HillyWallaby · 10/05/2012 15:07

No more now! Grin back to the lovely Jezza, and teeth.

HillyWallaby · 10/05/2012 15:21

Oops, sorry just realised those figures are a bit wrong as they are not for everyone at a flat rate, (I thought they looked a bit high - it has changed since I did my son's last year and the new fee structure has come in) so those figures are the maximum you can get, once your parents' income has been assessed. But we can assume that if you are from a very poor household you will get the maximum, and if you are from a relatively wealthy household you will get the minimum.

OhDoAdmitMrsDeVere · 10/05/2012 15:44

Jeez this thread Hmm

Why is so hard to work out why people go on JK?
Some people have no idea there is any other way to sort out issues. They dont know about mediation, counselling and shy away from anything involving the authorities.
They get 15 minutes of fame. Despite what many people think, life on benefits is not a whole load of fun. They get a night in a hotel and gain some sort of name for themselves.
They get listened to, they get attention. THEY are important. Many of the people on the show have never had any sort of positive attention. Witness the way JK likes to reel people in, he gets them all comfy and makes them feel they are in the right and then BAMMO! He lets rip as the other side of the story comes out.
He has a fondness for using the phrase 'this woman has been through the worse thing that can happen to a women!' when talking about miscarriage. How many of those women do you think have ever had that sort of sympathy?
The teeth thing is fairly easy. They have no one to say 'go to the dentist'. They are surrounded by people with teeth in a similar state. They smoke, they are skint (NHS dentistry is expensive), and if they dont care what they look like no-one else does.

JK is a horrible freak show. It pretends to be a social service but it only exists for one reason - to make 'us' feel better about our lives by sneering at 'them'.

Them being the 'others'. Never mind that the majority have had the kind of lives that would make you weep - they are poor, they are ugly and they are not very bright - that makes them fair game doesnt it?

Hownoobrooncoo · 10/05/2012 16:13

Hilly, not so sure these areas with disadvantaged kids do get the same education as the MC kids. Many MC parents go private and make sure their kids get into the 'better' schools which are often in the most expensive areas. If it was the same education there wouldn't be the sramble for places in certain schools.

bringbacksideburns · 10/05/2012 16:20

I don't get why there's an audience either. It's not like they contribute is it? They don't interject or ask questions. They just snigger, boo or applaud Jezza and the rest of the time just sit there with their gobs open.

OTTMummA · 10/05/2012 16:40

I have been abused and raped, when i was much younger, i still feel upset and get anxious about having dental treatment, and tests, it isn't that i am scared of the needle or whatever, it is the feeling that i am not in control of my body, it makes me feel very vunerable.
I can have blood tests just fine now, and have given blood before, but i have to psych myself up before.
I have a female dentist, which helps, but i also only go when i am in pain with something, sometimes not even then.
I take very good care of my teeth now however because i want to avoid going to the dentist.
I still however have not ever had a smear test, and doubt i ever will tbh.
I have also refused scans in pregnancy when it has been offered without prior knowledge, saying no makes me feel more in control, i like a schedule, appointments, outlining what will take place etc.

I can't watch JK for longer than a 1min, it makes me cringe seeing people being taken advantage off like that, Jezza is vile and loves the sound of his own voice, makes me want to yak, especially his fake concern over some of his 'guests'.

helpyourself · 10/05/2012 16:44

It's a freak show. They get kept up the night before, being wound up by 'researchers'.

hattymattie · 10/05/2012 16:52

I watched it once - I actually wondered if they were actors! - even though I've seen extreme poverty I couldn't get my head round why they would want to air their dirty laundery on TV like this. It is a freak show and thoroughly exploitative.