Blind date . . . meets John, 47, who wrote in to say: I’m just what she’s looking for!
Jane, 48, who recently asked in the Mail: Where have all the good men gone . . .
ReCeNTLY, we tackled the question that plagues so many single women — where have all the good men gone? Afterwards, comments from men flooded in.
So, for this week’s blind date, we sent Jane Townsend, one of the women profiled in the feature, on a date with John Simpson, who wrote in. They went to Argentinian steakhouse Gaucho in London’s Piccadilly.
Jane, who has two daughters, is 48 and lives in Sheffield. She has been single for several years. She loves the theatre and ballroom dancing, and works in marketing.
John, 47, from London, has a four-year-old son and works for a bank. He speaks Spanish and Italian fluently, and has been single for four years.
Can he change Jane’s mind about men?
JANE, 48, SAYS:
WHere I live I struggle to find anyone cultured. I need someone who likes to laugh and doesn’t take themselves too seriously, but can hold a decent conversation. Someone educated, with old-fashioned manners.
I want to find a man my age, but they all want younger women, and I’m left with older men I’m not really attracted to.
I find older men are set in their ways, you almost feel more like a carer or parent than a girlfriend. I’ve cared for my children and my parents, and don’t want to end up looking after someone else in a few years’ time.
And then there’s appearance. When they reach their 40s women see the writing on the wall and get a grip on their health and beauty to deal with the changes of ageing, whereas men just think they don’t have to bother because there are always dozens of younger women who will go out with them.
I did see a photo of John before our date — it seemed only fair, as he had seen me in the paper. He was the one that really stood out from the men who wrote in.
Still, I was very nervous before arriving at the restaurant. But John is a lovely man, really sweet and interesting. He was quite giddy and kept talking to the staff in Spanish, but I put that down to nerves.
I’m not sure if there was any sexual chemistry, and it felt in many ways as if I was sitting down with a friend. There wasn’t really any flirting, and I didn’t get the impression he fancied me. But we got on really well and the conversation flowed, as we have a lot in common and many of the same interests.
The restaurant was really elegant, our steaks perfectly cooked. We shared a bottle of wine, too.
John admitted he had looked me up on the internet before the date. He even told me he’d been so thrilled when I said ‘yes’ he’d shown my photo to all his mates.
We swapped numbers, and after the meal he said he would escort me home on the Tube as it wasn’t far out of his way. I was absolutely fine with that.
I had my key in the lock of my friend’s flat where I was staying, then turned to say goodnight. I thought he was going for the Continental two cheeks kiss but he went for the lips.
It was a bit awkward, but I laughed and we said goodnight. Later he texted to say he’d got home. We’ve been in touch since.
John is such a lovely guy. He’s good looking, keeps in shape and is really interesting to talk to, but he’s also a salesman and had a lot of patter so it was a little difficult to break through that to see who the real John is. I think the date has shown me that there are lovely men my age after all. As for John, I would see him again — watch this space…
LIKED? Friendly, articulate — and fun. REGRETS? None. COFFEE OR CAB? Coffee. VERDICT: 7/10 JOHN, 47, SAYS: AFTer reading the Mail’s article about women not being able to find a decent man, I felt their frustration so I thought: ‘Why not?’ and wrote in for a date.
I’m a good catch, with my own hair and teeth and I’m still in good shape! I’m also confident, articulate and know what I want — and I like women who are the same. I’m more Prada than Primark, and take care of my appearance by going to the gym and leading a healthy lifestyle.
I love travelling in europe, and worked overseas for many years as a holiday rep. I’ve never married but was engaged and have a young son.
Although I’ve tried internet dating, it’s like a lucky dip — often you don’t get a reply to your messages, and other times all you get is superficial chat.
I was really excited about the date, and nervous about meeting Jane. I knew she would be beautiful — and the evening didn’t disappoint.
When Jane walked in to the restaurant, where I was waiting at the bar, I heard Chris de Burgh singing Lady In red in my head. She was dressed immaculately in a red dress and matching shoes, and she looked wonderful.
When we moved to our table there was very little light, so I told Jane ‘I look better in the dark’ and made her laugh.
We chatted about languages, wine, travelling, and our shared interests of art and rugby. I was fascinated by her love of the Forties era, both the vintage fashion and period festivals.
Gaucho was very nice — and I did speak in Spanish to try to impress Jane! We both had steak, which was melt-in-the-mouth.
I definitely did fancy Jane. She is engaging, articulate and gorgeous and I felt a butterfly somewhere in my heart.
She is very polite and has a great sense of humour. I flirted with her a bit, hopefully without crossing the line.
The evening ended too early in my eyes, since our conversation was free-flowing, although sadly the wine wasn’t — we stuck to one bottle on Jane’s preference.
I’m a gentleman so I offered to take her home, albeit by public transport including a Tube, bus and a seven-minute walk! The area of London where she was staying isn’t a great place for a classy female walking alone.
Jane agreed to let me be her guardian, and when we arrived at her door we had a kiss.
I loved the experience. Although Yorkshire is a fair distance away I am travelling to Leeds for work in the next few weeks and we hope to meet up again for a drink.
LIKED? She is beautiful and smart and I’d like to get to know her better.
REGRETS? Only that the night ended too early.
COFFEE OR CAB? Definitely coffee. VERDICT: 8/10