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Ooh la la! First Dates flies off to France
Gallic matchmaker Fred Sirieix, who’s relocated First Dates to a hotel in Provence for a new series, tells Lisa Sewards it’s even more romantic than the original
The nation’s favourite love guru Fred Sirieix’s eyes are twinkling more than usual because he’s ramped up the romance in his new show. First Dates Hotel, a spin- off from the phenomenally successful First Dates, has airlifted the setting from London’s Paternoster Chop House restaurant – where a succession of pre-matched blind daters meet for the first time – to an idyllic boutique hotel in the sundrenched countryside of southern France. There, after sharing cocktails and dinner, the first daters can get to know each other better by meeting up again the following day.
Fred says the plan behind his new show is most certainly not to give the singletons the chance for some overnight intimacy, more the opportunity to further any romantic connection they might make, which they don’t get with the London restaurant experience. ‘At the restaurant we have about 14 dates a day and it’s very intense,’ he explains. ‘But the hotel is just unbelievable. It’s in an old medieval village with cobbled streets. It’s so beautiful and when you arrive there time just stops. You’re instantly in a bubble, so there’s more time for love to blossom.
The beauty is the daters are more relaxed, open and adventurous – their anticipation and excitement is visible.
‘So it’s not like at the restaurant where some people have their date at four o’clock and go back to work as soon as it’s over. In the hotel the most important thing we can give them is time. We have just five couples a day and they have two days to relax, to get to know one another. We also got to understand and know them too.’
Does he think the fact they have bedrooms – each has their own – is a bit dangerous? Fred is horrified. ‘Non! Non! It’s in line with the vision and values of the First Dates restaurant, it’s all about the first date and helping people to find love. It doesn’t get any more sexy than it does in the restaurant show. We’re not trashy and we’re not interested in what they do in their own rooms. Our intentions are to help them find love. What they have is more time to meet and get to know each other.’
As such the setting was of paramount importance and it took four months for the show’s producers – and Fred – to find and approve it. This turned out to be Le Vieux Castillon, a four-star boutique hotel in the medie- val village of Castillon- du- Gard, where the 33 rooms cost up to £500 a night. ‘Being French I’m biased, but France is the most romantic place,’
smiles Fred. It took a fortnight for the crew to rig the hotel’s terrace, restaurant, bedrooms and poolside with 80 cameras. Fred is joined on the show by his familiar TV staff – waiters Sam, Laura and Cici and barman Merlin, for whom a bar has been built in the restaurant – plus receptionist Juliette.
‘The guests come to reception and we take them to their room. Then they have a coffee and get changed, go to the bar and have an apéritif,’ says Fred. ‘And then they meet their dates before dining alfresco. They can have a drink by the pool afterwards, and then go back and do their own thing.’
He admits there’s more at stake with the hotel than in the restaurant as daters are checked in for two nights, whether they like each other or not. ‘If things are going well, they have a chance for a second date the next day. They go on bike rides or picnics, swimming or looking at the scenery,’ says Fred. ‘But if things don’t go well, they have to deal with what happened the night before.’
Stand-up comedian Tom Houghton, 31, from Brighton, wanted to remain philosophical when he was matched with art teacher Bella Franks, 26, from London in this week’s episode. Tom had never had a long-term relationship. ‘A friend applied for me as I don’t like the baring yourself in public aspect,’ says Tom. ‘But First Dates is about helping people, so I knew they wouldn’t set me up with a crazy man-eater.
‘Then when I realised it was abroad and in a hotel, that was the cherry on the cake. The location is a catalyst for Tom and
Bella
making yourself open to romance – it feels special. When the sunset hits you can’t help but feel a bit romantic.’
But Tom was determined to keep his expectations reasonable. ‘My motto was to be happy and humble. I thought, “Even if I make a friend that’s a bonus.” Then this 6ft leggy blonde wearing an Audrey Hepburn hat and sunglasses stepped out as I was sipping on my half a lager. I felt flattered by the matchmakers and t hought , “Thank you very much.” I’ve never had a long-term relationship as I wanted to have a great time in my 20s, but now I’m in my 30s I’m more open to it. With Bella we were very matched in our attitudes and I realised she wasn’t desperate for love either as, like me, she’s happy as she is.’
But Manchester flatmates Kate Humphreys and Charlotte Bithell were more hopeful of a good match when they both applied to the First Dates Hotel. ‘In January last year we needed a plan to find nice boyfriends so we applied. We were accepted and paired with Adam and Dean, who were also flatmates and lived near us,’ says HR manager Kate, 26, who will be seen on the show next week with Charlotte. ‘We all met for drinks but had our dinner dates separately. Charlotte and Dean got on like a house on fire. Adam was great too but he doesn’t like girls who wear makeup. I love wearing it and I’m not going to change.
‘But I’d recommend the experience of First Dates Hotel to anyone as it gave me so much confidence. Before I was the chubby girl with ginger hair and glasses. I wasn’t confident. But after going on the show I came away thinking, “You know what – I’m all right.” It gave me the confidence to have more dates.’
Naturally, Kate was charmed by Fred, who lived up to his reputation by greeting every guest as if they were the person he most longed to meet. He’s always on hand to dispense words of wisdom, although he insists he’s just there to observe. ‘We don’t intervene, people are in their own bubble. We make sure they have everything, and part of our job, without intruding, is to try and work out how they’re feeling and what they’re thinking just so we can deliver better service.’
He did, however, offer words of wisdom to one First Dater. ‘One chap was not quite hitting the spot with a girl as some of his comments were not always appropriate – the wrong side of borderline. Afterwards, he opened up to me and said that he’d messed up. We had a chat and in the morning he had realised his mistakes.
‘In First Dates I see minirelationships forming in two or three hours. It’s fascinating. But the human heart is very difficult to understand.’
One of the reasons First Dates has become cult viewing is Fred’s smooth-talking manner. Key to this is that he understands what it is to love and also fall out of love. He is father to Andrea, 12, and Matteo-Lucien, seven, but his 12year relationship with their mother, Alex, ended recently and he now has another partner. He’s still surprised by the proposals First Dates brings him. Has he ever taken one up? ‘I don’t have time,’ he chuckles. ‘But I don’t get as many as you think. It’s nice to be in a position where people watch your show because it’s good though.’
So what’s his ideal venue for a first date? ‘I like to go to restaurants but if you’re stuck with the wrong date for two hours it’s not good!’ he laughs. ‘ The best thing is to have two or three tapas dishes and a glass of wine. If it’s going well you order the whole menu, otherwise you just say, “Thanks very much. I’m going to go now.” I haven’t got a chat- up line. They just come out, or they don’t. It’s organic.’
Courtesy, care and respect are his mantras and he remains the high priest of romance with the First Dates Hotel his new temple of love. ‘I cried once during the show, but I also laughed uncontrollably a lot,’ he says. ‘I’m glad I laughed more than I cried because romance is all about fun, after all.’
First Dates Hotel is on Mondays at 10pm on Channel 4.
‘It’s relaxed, there’s more time for love to blossom’