Blind Date is breaking new ground.
When the hit dating show returned in 2017, it made headlines for introducing same-sex pairings for the first time. Now, in a first for the show, bisexual daters will also be brought on to choose between a male and female line-up.
The episode in question, which will air in May, will introduce beauty consultant Jordan, as he decides between model Jesse, French master’s student Zoe, or support worker Lily.
“I’m delighted that Blind Date is continuing to be inclusive by giving a platform to those who identify as bisexual,” said Paul O’Grady, who presents the show. “It was a joy to film and I’m sure Cilla would have been proud.”
The format of the show will still follow the same style as the all-male and all-female line-ups that appeared when Channel 5 brought back the iconic show in 2017.
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In a previous interview with Gay Times, Paul O’Grady spoke about how Cilla Black had fought for same-sex couples to appear in the show, but it never happened. Cilla Black hosted the original series of Blind Date before she left in 2003.
“At the time it was, ‘Oh no, we can’t have that.’ Because you know what the press are like. ‘Filth, disgusting’. I love it when they get on their high horse and ride up to high moral grounds because the air must be very thin up there, that’s all I can say,” he told us.
“They really piss me off, I feel like saying, ‘It’s time to move on, get over yourselves,’ but they don’t do they? You only have to read comments to realise what we’re dealing with, fucking shocking. I thought homophobia was dead, but it’s not. It’a alive and bloody well.”
Blind Date airs Sundays at 8pm on Channel 5.