Tragedy: Without the glare of the spotlight, Francois Xavier Leuridan struggled with life
A reality TV show contestant evicted from a Big Brother-style house in France has killed himself because he 'could not re-adjust to life in the outside world'.
Francois-Xavier Leuridan walked in front of a car on a main road after suffering depression because he could not re-adjust to real life, it was reported.
Fellow house-mates said the 22-year-old had spent two years 'trying to cope with no longer being famous' after being voted off the Secret Story reality show, produced by TV production giant Endemol, in 2009.
Leuridan had released a pop single and launched a line of clothing over the past 18 months, but both ventures flopped and he vanished from the public eye.
His death has now sparked accusations that fame-hungry contestants do not receive sufficient psychological after-care following a spell in the reality TV spotlight.
Martin Medus, a contestant on the show with Leuridan, said: 'He lived for fame and spent two years after the show failing to accept that he was no longer a celebrity.
'They say you'll be looked after by a psychiatrist before and after your time in the house.
'But in fact I just received a letter three months after the series ended saying, "If you're unhappy, call this number".'
Contestant Cindy Lopes said: 'Fame is poisonous. One day it all disappears and you're alone. Even your close friends don't look at you in the same way.'
Deputy public prosecutor Sylvie Morin said there was 'no doubt' Leuridan's death on a main road in Bouee, near Nantes, western France, was a suicide.
She added: 'This was no accident. The young man committed suicide by throwing himself under the wheels of a car, just a few seconds after a first car had swerved around him as he tried to kill himself.'
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