Game Show Memories – Singled Out.

Singled Out (Channel 5, 1998-2001)

I thought that I would try and squeeze out one more game show memory that I have, and this is a dating game with a difference… although they all claim to be that really. Singled Out is among a small group of game shows where the original American version has also been shown in this country. This was in the late-90s, and on BBC2 in a Sunday afternoon slot, but this was originally shown on MTV a year or two earlier.

This also helped to raise the profile of Jenny McCarthy who was one of the hosts, and lots of people remain rather grateful I’m sure. The basic idea of the British version was just about the same, and the original hosts for this were Richard Blackwood (who also went on to host Top Of The Pops among other things) and Sarah Cawood (who also went on to, er, host Top Of The Pops among other things).

There is one contestant, along with 50 people of the opposite sex, who they can’t see. Their basic characteristics have been noted, such as their age, height, hair colour, and so on. In the first round, there are about four or five of these to choose from. The contestant then announces what they like, and anyone who has been determined not to fit that criteria is instantly eliminated and has to leave the stage.

As they walk off past the contestant, a lot of them make an “ooh, look what you’re missing out on”-type gesture (in the American version, a “golden ticket” was introduced, where if the they actually did like the look of someone who had been eliminated, they would hand them the ticket, and they would be reinstated). After a while, when there are usually about six people remaining, they go into the next round.

They would now be asked various questions, or even have to perform a stunt. If the contestant doesn’t like their answer, or how they performed, again they are eliminated. This carries on until there are three remaining, who go into the final. In this, there are questions with two options. If they can match what the contestant said, they take one step further. The first one to get to the end is declared the winner.

Then they would finally be revealed to the contestant who they supposedly have a lot in common with. If it turns out that they don’t actually like the look of them, tough luck. They then choose a date to go on, which is hopefully somewhere rather exotic abroad, although it’s unlikely that any long-term friendships were formed out of the show. In the second part, all of this is done again, but with the sexes reversed.

Later series of Singled Out were hosted by Marc Crumpton and Tess Daly. All of the editions were shown on Channel 5 in a weekend afternoon slot as part of their strands for teenagers, and I presume that this was also shown on MTV in this country. This was definitely a noisy and rather trashy show, but in all honesty, I would still have rather watched this than the horror that was the ITV dating game show Man O Man.