What it’s like to go on a date made for reality TV
Tag along with ‘Bachelorette’ Rachel and one of her admirers
What’s it like to date on reality TV?
Rachel Lindsay, ABC’s first black Bachelorette, knows about the lights, the producers and the screaming fans all too well. After all, the 32-year-old attorney appeared on Nick Viall’s season of
The Bachelor and has been on plenty of group dates this season.
But for 27-year-old Anthony Battle, joining Lindsay for a oneon-one that involved riding horses and shopping on Rodeo Drive was, well, his first rodeo.
I was right there last March, when USA TODAY got an exclusive glimpse of what Monday’s episode of ABC’s The Bachelorette (8 ET/PT) is like between takes.
For one, I learned that there’s a lot of sitting around.
After Battle and Lindsay shop in posh Beverly Hills stores, their equine companions waiting outside, they sit on benches outside of City Hall. With buses of tourists out of sight, they can relax.
At least they appear relaxed as they wait to film the “confessional” interviews that are reality-TV staples, and then get ready for another date. They seem to have an easy chemistry, but sit apart, perhaps saving more conversation for when the cameras are rolling.
“Talk about embracing the entire look,” Lindsay quips to Battle, who’s wearing the new cowboy hat he and Lindsay purchased (with ABC’s money) on the date. He smiles. Meanwhile, Lindsay’s hat is left with a producer, who lets me try it on.
Other producers admire the hat, reassure each other the date went well and snack on cupcakes.
Lindsay stands out in the group of makeup-free producers wearing sweats: She’s movie-star glamorous with a fresh face and a striking, gap-toothed smile. She’s happy to talk about her recent date, which, she says, was custom tailored for her.
“Maybe I’m being a stereotype right now, but I am from Texas, so I’ve expressed that I have this city side, but I also ride horses,” Lindsay says. “I like a guy that can roll with the punches” and not be afraid to try something new, says the attorney, who’s since revealed that she is engaged to someone on the show.
Could it be Battle, the computer software engineer sitting just feet away from her?
Lindsay and Battle go off to shoot, but he has less experience speaking in TV-friendly soundbites.
“Once you start getting focused on what’s happening, you don’t even see the cameras anymore,” the Chicago native says. “Obviously, in everyday life, you don’t get interviewed after every experience you have. So it’s something to get used to even more so than the cameras,” he says. Of the elaborate horseback riding date, he adds, “I’m just excited to get out of the house and spend some time with Rachel.”
Though Battle has traveled the world teaching English, this oneon-one date marks his first time out of the Bachelor mansion since shooting began, and the first time he’s ever ridden a horse.
Producers gather around Battle and give him a pep talk before he changes for another date. One suggests he have a “little makeout” with Lindsay.
We’ll see if the prompting was effective on Monday’s episode.