COULD YOU find love on FIRST DATES?
We go behind the scenes to find out what it’s really like to go on the hit show
I t has all the makings of a perfect first date: a swanky restaurant, a tailor-made love match, and a dinner service overseen by the maître ’d who puts the fine in fine dining, monsieur Fred Sirieix . How could you not fall in love? But is First Dates as authentic as it appears? Are the contestants told to retake scenes? And when they’re seen arguing over the bill, are they seriously digging into their own pockets? heat spoke to four former First Daters (two of whom are now an item) to find out what it takes to dish up Tv-worthy love.
SIGNING UP
Nabbing a date on the show is harder than swiping right on Tinder. First, would-be romancers fill out an online application about their vital stats and what they’re looking for in a partner. “I was then asked to London for an interview,” says barber Lee Felton, 33, from Manchester, who appeared on the show last December (AK A, the guy who “dribbled” on the way to the loo mid-date). “They asked me about my work history, family and what I was looking for. A few months later, they called saying they had a match.” The
matchmaking process itself is
labour-intensive, as producers survey thousands of applicants. “You need a character reference and someone you’re close to has to confirm you’re single,” says 32-year-old PA Lauren Leonard,
from Kent, who
appeared on season two in 2014. With any luck, a match will be made, and
then it’s off to London
(travel expenses covered), and onto the path to true love.
THE DATE
While you often hear unappetising stories of cold food being served up hours after preparation on rival TV shows, First Dates’ restaurant is real. It is, in fact, the Paternoster Chop House in central London. But those of us hoping to pop in and catch the daters in action face disappointment – during filming, the restaurant is rented out for days at a time. It’s then transformed with 42 cameras,
which are suspended from the ceiling, fixed to walls, and hidden in plant pots. “The food was the best part of the date,” says Lee. Chloe Swift, 35, from Wiltshire, who appeared on the show three years ago, agrees. “You couldn’t fault the food and service.” Her dog Bentley , who was on the date, even got a steak.
Even better, while a standard evening at Paternoster may set you back a few quid (the cheapest main dish is £17.50), First Dates lend a helping hand, with each participant given £30. “I offered to pay, but my date said no,” Lauren reveals. “The money went towards the blow-dry I had before!”
Lauren’s boyfriend Dan Carpenter, 40, a senior consultant from Kent, who appeared on the show last year (they were already friends at the time and fell for each other before his episode aired), experienced the reverse. “Our bill was over £150 and I ended up paying it all,” he says. “Still, it wasn’t so bad – one guy got left with a bill for £350.”
LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION
Pre-and post-interviews take place outside the venue but, once the daters are inside, they are free from cameramen. “All the cameras are hidden,” explains Chloe. “They didn’t have any rules and the date can last as long as you want – we were in there for hours.” And Lauren adds, “For a TV show, it’s the closest you’ll get to a real first date. If you have spinach in your teeth, they won’t stop filming.”
Nevertheless, “featured daters” – those who wear mics and star in the final edit – know they’re in the spotlight, while the other couples in the episode are “background daters” – people on real dates who were also set up by the show.
“They do try to match the people in the background, too, but you don’t feel quite as special as you do as a main dater,” says Lauren, who also appeared on a non-featured date. And prepare to be plied with booze. “From the moment you go in, they supply you with drink,” says Lauren. “That’s where it goes wrong for many daters.”
THE FINAL CUT
Contestants are free to say and do as they please, but once the liaison is edited into an eightminute encounter, they have no control. “I felt the way they edited me wasn’t the full story,” says Dan. “They cut out me saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’. They also made it look as if I’d been blown off by this girl, but we ended up going for a drink afterwards.”
Chloe adds, “It’s authentic, but heavily edited. I was lucky with how I came across. I was about to say he wasn’t my type, but they told me, ‘He was so complimentary, you have to say something nice back.’ But I didn’t mind because the show was a brilliant experience.”
‘It’s real – if you have spinach in your teeth, they won’t stop filming’