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A Comic Relief special in 1994 had ] on the show. The sketch featured ] as Bean, ] as Tracy, Bean's date and Cilla Black. The skit also featured ], in one of his earliest on-screen acting roles. A Comic Relief special in 1994 had ] on the show. The sketch featured ] as Bean, ] as Tracy, Bean's date and Cilla Black. The skit also featured ], in one of his earliest on-screen acting roles.

==Transmissions==
===Original series===
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Series !! Start date !! End date !! Episodes
|-
| <center>'''1''' || <center>30 November 1985 || <center>4 January 1986 || <center>6
|-
| <center>'''2''' || <center>30 August 1986 || <center>6 December 1986 || <center>15
|-
| <center>'''3''' || <center>5 September 1987 || <center>19 December 1987 || <center>16
|-
| <center>'''4''' || <center>3 September 1988 || <center>17 December 1988 || <center>16
|-
| <center>'''5''' || <center>16 September 1989 || <center>27 January 1990 || <center>20
|-
| <center>'''6''' || <center>29 September 1990 || <center>2 February 1991 || <center>19
|-
| <center>'''7''' || <center>7 September 1991 || <center>18 January 1992 || <center>19
|-
| <center>'''8''' || <center>10 October 1992 || <center>27 February 1993 || <center>20
|-
| <center>'''9''' || <center>18 September 1993 || <center>15 January 1994 || <center>17
|-
| <center>'''10''' || <center>1 October 1994 || <center>25 February 1995 || <center>21
|-
| <center>'''11''' || <center>16 September 1995 || <center>24 February 1996 || <center>24
|-
| <center>'''12''' || <center>28 September 1996 || <center>8 March 1997 || <center>24
|-
| <center>'''13''' || <center>20 September 1997 || <center>14 March 1998 || <center>26
|-
| <center>'''14''' || <center>21 November 1998 || <center>15 May 1999 || <center>24
|-
| <center>'''15''' || <center>20 November 1999 || <center>13 May 2000 || <center>24
|-
| <center>'''16''' || <center>18 November 2000 || <center>12 May 2001 || <center>24
|-
| <center>'''17''' || <center>10 November 2001 || <center>30 March 2002 || <center>21
|-
| <center>'''18''' || <center>12 October 2002 || <center>31 May 2003 || <center>26
|}

===Specials===
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Date !! Entitle
|-
| <center>25 December 1987 || <center>Christmas Special 1
|-
| <center>25 December 1988 || <center>Christmas Special 2
|-
| <center>29 July 1989 || <center>The Best of Blind Date 1
|-
| <center>22 September 1990 || <center>The Best of Blind Date 2
|-
| <center>9 February 1991 || <center>The Best of Blind Date 3
|-
| <center>20 October 1991 || <center>Blind Date Wedding
|-
| <center>21 December 1991 || <center>Christmas Special 3
|-
| <center>1 February 1992 || <center>The Best of Blind Date 4
|-
| <center>8 February 1992 || <center>The Best of Blind Date 5
|-
| <center>1 May 1992 || <center>The Best of Blind Date 6
|-
| <center>18 July 1992 || <center>Blind Date Telethon Special
|-
| <center>25 December 1992 || <center>Christmas Special 4
|-
| <center>1 January 1994 || <center>The Best of Blind Date 7
|-
| <center>12 February 1994 || <center>The Wedding & The Best of the Rest
|-
| <center>31 December 1994 || <center>Tenth Anniversary Show
|-
| <center>13 September 1997 || <center>Blind Date Exclusive 1
|-
| <center>21 March 1998 || <center>Blind Date Classics
|-
| <center>14 November 1998 || <center>Blind Date Exclusive 2
|-
| <center>20 June 1999 || <center>The Blind Date Wedding
|-
| <center>25 December 2002 || <center>Christmas Celebrity Special (Part 1)
|-
| <center>25 December 2002 || <center>Christmas Celebrity Special (Part 2)
|}


==References== ==References==

Revision as of 21:26, 14 October 2012

1985 British TV series or programme
Blind Date
Presented byCilla Black
Narrated byGraham Skidmore (1985-2002)
Tommy Sandhu (2002-3)
Country of originUnited Kingdom
No. of series18
No. of episodes356
Production
ProducerLondon Weekend Television
Running time60mins (inc. adverts)
Original release
NetworkITV
Release30 November 1985 (1985-11-30) –
31 May 2003 (2003-05-31)
Related
Take Me Out
Take Me Out: The Gossip
The Love Machine
The Love Machine: Love Bites

Blind Date is a British dating game show produced by London Weekend Television. An unscreened pilot was made with comic Duncan Norvelle as presenter but it was eventually hosted by Cilla Black, who already hosted the LWT series, Surprise, Surprise. Blind Date ran on Saturdays nights from 30 November 1985 to 31 May 2003.

Format

The show had a format similar to the show known in Australia as Perfect Match or in the US as The Dating Game. Three singles of the same sex were introduced to the audience. They were then questioned by a single of the opposite sex, who could hear but not see them, to choose with whom to go on a date. Before the decision 'Graham' (replaced on the final series by Tommy Sandhu), who was never seen, gave an amusing reminder of each contestant. The couple then picked an envelope naming their destination, although the "random choice" was fixed as all envelopes contained the same destination. The following episode showed the couple on their date, and interviews with them about the date and about each other. Locations ranged from Bognor Regis or a date in an ice cream factory to Anguilla or the Maldives.

Production

A pilot was shot in early 1985 fronted by comedian Duncan Norvelle. John Birt, LWT's director of programmes, and the IBA regulatory body had reservations about Norvelle's camp style. Black had seen The Dating Game in the US and enthused about it to LWT's Alan Boyd, who produced Surprise, Surprise and who made the Norvelle pilot. After two pilots starring Black, the series was commissioned. Thelma Pickles, an old girlfriend of John Lennon, worked as a producer on the show.

Popularity

At the height of its popularity in the 1980s, 18.2 million tuned in on a Saturday night. Black's scouse accent and her catchphrases became familiar throughout the United Kingdom. Viewing figures declined to 5 million by 2003.

Cancellation

The series ended in 2003 when, during the first episode - the first to be broadcast live - Black announced she was quitting the show. The production crew had not been told. Production was halted after the series ended; Trisha Goddard, Dale Winton, Paul O'Grady, Ant & Dec, Claire Sweeney and Jerry Springer were to be in line for her replacement but the show was cancelled. However, ITV briefly aired a similar show hosted by Davina McCall, called Love on a Saturday Night and since 2010, Take Me Out, hosted by Paddy McGuinness.

Famous contestants

Blind Date featured celebrities before they became well known. These include:

A Comic Relief special in 1994 had Mr Bean on the show. The sketch featured Rowan Atkinson as Bean, Barbara Durkin as Tracy, Bean's date and Cilla Black. The skit also featured Alan Cumming, in one of his earliest on-screen acting roles.

References

  1. ^ Jennings, Luke (6 March 1994). "Independent on Sunday, 6 March 1994". The Independent. London. Retrieved 26 April 2010.
  2. http://sentstarr.tripod.com/beatgirls/thelma.html
  3. Speight in Blind Date
  4. Revealed: The spot where tragic TV star Mark Speight's body hung undiscovered for six days
  5. Blind Date Christmas 1989
  6. Amanda Holden
  7. Biography Howard Griffiths
  8. Ed Byrne
  9. How Jenni played a Blinder; GMTV's Jenni Falconer may have got her big break on Blind Date but she still hasn't found love
  10. Blind Date Veterans
  11. Nikki Grahame
  12. Tara Palmer-Tomkinson

External links

Categories: