Channel 4 First Dates Experience

I had no idea what to expect when my friend from work, Phil, text me:

So whilst feeling Christmas-sy and drinking wine after work, I decided after a lack of luck with boys recently..I would go on a date live on TV. I clearly had a mental moment.

The process of signing up was quite extensive actually. We had to have two references to confirm we were who we said we were (basically to check we weren't complete psychos), criminal background checks and a preliminary phone call. On the phone call a lovely woman asked us our preferences in Men, which is an impossibly hard thing to answer. I only really specified that I'd like someone similar in age, so I had to mentally prepare for a right weirdo.

On January 12th 2015, I made my way to St Paul's for my blind date in the evening. Thankfully I had my friend Phil by my side, and we went for a glass of Vino before for Dutch courage. Although, we needn't have bothered, seeing as when we arrived at the holding room at a youth hostel nearby, we were plied with wine (which is why everyone always looks pissed on TV). We were put in a room with all the girl extras, so I can only assume there was another room full of boy extras. Then one by one we were called down to wait outside the restaurant for our big entrance. I was so nervous at this point, I didn't even think to look what the restaurant was called, so don't ask haha.

I was made to walk in before my date and was shown to my table by the lovely Fred, the head waiter. I was sat in the main section but at the side, so I had a good view of the main dates going on around me. You could tell they were on a main date, due to them wearing a little microphone, all the mini cameras in the restaurant pointing to them and the excessive amount they were drinking.

My date walked in....uh oh. Not my type, not my type, not my type. So at least in that moment I knew straight away that boys with long-ish hair and hippy style clothing, were not for me. But I was willing to give his personality a chance. Although, it turns out he wasn't for me due to this aspect too. He was very eager to talk about himself, his love of making music, love of animals and many more things I wasn't interested in. His lack of aspiration was the biggest turn off, he wasn't at all concerned that at the age of 23 he wasn't earning any money yet. Also, he loved cats...no, just no.

However, the premise of the show means they expect you to stay there for hours so that the restaurant never looks empty. So I did everything I could to entertain myself in this time. Which meant commenting on every date going on around me, watching my friend to see if she had any chemistry with her man and taking regular trips to the toilet. The toilet had cameras in the sink area, and I managed to speak to a girl who was on a main date, whilst I was in there. She was telling me how awful he was and she was playing drinking games just to get through the date. However, when I watched the date on TV in February, they ended up becoming a couple after the show..how strange. 

The massive bonuses to this date was that Channel 4 paid for it, it was absolutely scrumptious food and they paid for our taxi home.

Safe to say at the end of the night, my date and I didn't exchange numbers, details or even full names. 

However, the whole First Dates experience was fun, and definitely opened by eyes to world of blind dating.

Here's me right in the back (behind my friend Phil on her date)-

Skinny Girl Bashing

This is a very important topic in my opinion.

I am 'skinny'. A lot of people think I am 'too' thin. 

I do not go out of my way to stay this weight, or god forbid lose weight. Some weekends are spent only eating takeaways, my snacks are all unhealthy and I could not tell you the calories in anything meal I regularly eat. Although this is not something to be proud of, I really need to be healthier...woopsy.

These are some of the comments I get-

1. Are you ok? You are looking a bit thin.

2. You're so thin, do you even exist?

3. You're so lucky to be that thin.

4. Oh shutup, you're skinny, you don't get an opinion.
5. You look like you need a good meal.

I also listen to people say these things-

1. Skinny girls in magazines don't represent real women.
2. Curves are better than bones.
3. I prefer a bit of meat on girls, skinny girls are unattractive.

The real misconception is if a girl is really skinny she has an eating disorder. She is starving herself to look 'better' or making herself throw up to lose weight.

The truth; some of us have a fast metabolism.

Yet, throughout my school years I had various teachers voice their concern I might have something wrong by asking questions such as 'Have you been eating properly?'. 'Duty of care' , they would say. However, I was the teenage girl looking in the mirror after these questions, wondering if there was something wrong with me. Was I too skinny? Was I ugly? Did everyone look at me in disgust?

When will people understand that calling someone out on their body shape is WRONG. Being told you look anorexic is exactly the same as being told you look obese. It's not ok. 

What makes a real woman? Surely all of us are.

Why do we bash each other down to make ourselves feel better?

Society labels what is normal. I am normal, you are normal.

Don't make curves something all girls strive for; a skinny girl could never get them.

Soon, Men will realise they can't pit us against each other.

Men will realise we are all something they should desire.

I'm real.

Am I lucky to be thin? Some people don't make me feel that way.

But I do exist. I do have an opinion.