First to walk through the doors tonight is Vlad, 22, who says he’s learned all about love from (here we go…).
“I can’t say I have a problem with getting girls,” he says, “but I can say I have a problem with getting the girl for me. I am sick of one-night stands, I want to settle down.” Fair enough Vlad.
Alannah, 21, is sick of three-month situationships, and wants someone looking for a relationship. The teacher in training has a thing for GAA players, so is only delighted when she hears Vlad plays both football and hurling — and credits the sports with helping him integrate into Ireland (he moved to Roscrea from Latvia with no English aged 4). The pair hit it off with Vlad saying it was the best date he was ever on, and after a little fight over trying to split, Vlad sorts the bill.
There was no messing about when he was asked whether he wanted to see her again. “I would LOVE to see Alannah again.
“Straight out!,” Alannah laughs. “Awww.”
Thankfully, she happily said yes too, and the two headed off to Camden St for “cocktail o’clock”.
Self confessed ‘wild thing’ Pamela was looking for love
Pamela, 40, from Wicklow comes wearing the dress that “never fails”. Refreshingly upfront, she says sexual attraction is very important to her because she’s a “wild thing”. As for sex on a first date? “You have to try before you buy.” She starts her night off by asking for bartender Neil to give her a double of whatever she’s having, and looks aghast when her date shows up and asks for a Heineken 0.
It’s clear Kevin, 40, from Dublin, isn’t quite on the same level as Pamela. But when she reveals she was an exotic dancer for years, he takes it all in stride. “Very good… Listen, some of us have talents, in all different ways.”
But while he may have come across as open to anything, when Alice comes over to ask how the dating is going when Pamela has taken a bathroom break, he gives a look that seems to say, not great.
“Not your typical…?” Alice enquires, “No,” he answers.
“That was a bit much for me,” he admits in the interview.
Pamela says she’d like to see him again, but unfortunately, it’s a no from Kevin.
Anna from Kildare hits it off with Ailish from Louth
Anna, 22, from Kildare says a date with her may be many things, but it certainly won’t be “boring”. The journalist arrives with a big smile and an even bigger Dolly Parton tote bag (with a handmade model house inside). But behind her cheery exterior, Anna says she is always afraid someone will meet her and “be let down.”
“She’s short, she’s got no hair, she’s not a girl, she’s.. something,” she says. But, when it comes to meeting someone else, she has no preferences. “Sure look at me, I couldn’t judge.” We’re screaming at the screen like we do at our friends when they talk themselves down.
When Ailish, 21, from Louth arrives, they hit it off straight away, nattering away about everything from spuds to having babies. When Alice comes to take their order, she stands with a pleasant smile at the side as they continue chattering away about squeamishness, pro-nouns… “This is great, will we do desert and then I can leave you?” Alice eventually interjects.
They giggle their way through the post-date interview, and it’s a yes from both to date number two.
Emma from Dundalk meets archaeologist Byron Jones from Wexford in the First Dates Ireland restaurant
Emma, 32, says her attitude to dating nowadays is “I am myself, and maybe one day, someone might like it.” Hear hear! The Dundalk lady is looking for an “old school gentleman”.
She’s paired up with archaeologist Byron, 33. from Wexford, who is keen to impart his job is not as interesting as it’s portrayed in screen.
Emma is big into her fitness and nutrition, and lets Byron know dessert tonight is a treat she usually doesn’t allow herself… “I’ve lost 6 stone,” she says. At first, we are afraid she’s just going to go on a self-congratulatory lap, but things go a bit deeper when she admits she became so obsessed with weight-loss it became a problem.
“I was malnourished… it became a game, how long can I go without eating anything?,” she admits. This lead her to faint at work and even lose the use of her legs.
“That must have been so scary,” Byron says. “Yes,” she says, “it was a turning point.” These days, Emma, says sport has become a big part of her life and it’s all about “healthy progress.”
Emma sharing her experience leads to Byron opening up about his own experience of dealing with depression for many years and the two agree that once they reached their 30s, a big help was becoming the kind of person that “doesn’t give a fuck”.
The two agree to a second date, but the next one has to be activity-based.
- First Dates Ireland airs Thursdays at 9:30pm on RTÉ 2
