TV producer who worked on Netflix shows ‘took own life’ after saying telly workers were ‘treated like meat’

A TV producer who worked on Netflix and Channel 4 shows took his own life after struggling with chronic work-related stress, an inquest heard.

John Balson, a 40-year-old freelancer, wrote a letter for his family detailing his struggles.

He later plunged from the Dartford Crossing bridge over the Thames.

He wrote: “Bosses in the TV industry have a lot to answer for.

“We’re treated as if we are meat.”

John worked long hours on grisly true crime documentaries, often across different time zones.

He was a married dad, expecting a second child at the time of his death in May.

Before his death he had desperately sought help for extreme migraines and insomnia.

But despite expressing suicidal thoughts he was not referred for in-patient care, the inquest in Maidstone, Kent, heard.

Conclusion: Suicide