In a world full of shows like Love Island and Too Hot to Handle, where sexy singletons are put in a gorgeous location and tested to see whether they can find true love, it’s easy to forget traditional dating where people essentially meet and then go on a date.
It’s the format that most of us follow, and the one Channel 4’s First Dates has been using successfully for 18 seasons. So it’s little wonder the show has no plans to switch it up for season 19 starting tonight (21st July), with the show’s maître d’hôtel Fred Sirieix insisting: “If it’s not broken, don’t fix it.”
Speaking exclusively to RadioTimes.com ahead of the new run, Fred admitted that apart from both being dating shows, there’s little comparison between First Dates and ITV2’s flagship series.
“You can’t compare the two really – they’re two different shows,” he explained. “I love Love Island, by the way! I love watching it and I think it’s very well done. I think it’s very interesting to see how people react and I think there’s a psychological drama behind everything that’s happening. It’s really fascinating.”
He continued: “First Dates isn’t that kind of show. It’s about two people who don’t know each other, who live in different places and sometimes not very far from each other, and they want to meet somebody that they can make a connection with, so that they can spend their life with them.
“That’s what most people are looking for when they come on First Dates. And so it’s about that conversation and about finding out whether they have a connection and whether there is chemistry. Chemistry – that’s what it’s about.”
First Dates starts tonight (Thursday 21st July) on Channel 4 at 10pm. Episodes will be released weekly on Thursdays. If you’re looking for more to watch, check out our TV Guide. Visit our Entertainment hub for all the latest news.
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