No fairy tale for Prince Farming
Bachelor alum Chris Soules dishes on love, dating and excruciating rose ceremonies
It ain’t easy dating 30 women — that’s what Chris Soules realized within hours of filming The Bachelor last season.
“It just got harder and harder as it went on, for me,” Soules — an Iowa farmer nicknamed Prince Farming — told the Star during a sit-down interview in October. “It was really excruciating from the first rose ceremony to the last.”
But Soules made it through and eventually popped the question to contestant Whitney Bischoff, a fertility nurse from Chicago.
Their relationship fizzled — as have most others conceived on The Bachelor.
But with the 20th season of the reality dating show premiering on Monday (OMNI at 8 p.m.), perhaps Ben Higgins will have better luck.
The Star sat down with Soules — who was in town for a Grain Farmers of Ontario event — to get the scoop on his post- Bachelor life, love and romantic prospects. On meeting 30 women on his first night on The Bachelor: “I was kind of like a kid in a candy store . . . I was overwhelmed with the quality of women.” On his breakup with Bischoff and whether his passion for farming factored into it: “No, absolutely not. That really had nothing to do with it. It was a relationship that didn’t work out. . . . We really didn’t even get to that point, honestly.” On meeting women now: “I really haven’t worked very hard at that. Honestly, I’ve been trying to focus on doing things I love . . . and get into a place where I’m ready to find love again.” On finding love on a reality TV show: “I do believe it is possible. I wouldn’t have done it had I not thought that.” On women proposing to men: “As a traditional homegrown Iowa boy, I feel as though it’s still the responsibility of the man to do that.” On transitioning from onscreen romance to real life love: “The toughest part is you don’t really get to see each other (from November to March) until the show’s done airing. You really need to work hard during that period of time to communicate and communicate often. You end ev- erything in this fairy-tale ending. It’s really hard to keep that momentum (going).” On another Bachelor stint: “I don’t think I could put myself through that again. It’s emotionally draining.”