The show that will forever be linked with Cilla Black this was the first TV dating show that all others aspire to be like.With its dodgy pick up lines, and cheesy catchphrases Cilla Black ruled Saturday night TV for years with this show, and quite rightly show.Yes, perhaps it was past its best towards the end of its run, but everything has its time, and fairplay to Black for announcing live on air that she was quitting.It's been revived recently, but for many it will be associated with Black.

The outline: one contestant has to choose between three, unseen-to-whom members of the opposite sex, their only help being the answers to three questions asked by them to them (capped off by a recap by 'Our Graham'). The resulting 'couple' are then off for a holiday (anywhere from Alton Towers to the Seychelles), having picked a card from one of several (although, typically, the guy acts like the perfect gentleman, allowing the girl to pick). A week on, and they return, complete with footage of their holiday, and their verdict on one another. Obviously fixed show. Gullible viewers believe that the guy/girl choosing asks three questions of his/her own choice, to which the three hopefuls of the opposite sex reply with their own responses. The more cynical viewer, however, will surely realize that the contestants rarely fail to offer a witty, intelligent reply with remarkable spontaneity, despite often looking a sandwich short of a picnic. Contestants are usually selected for their good looks, although a contestant (usually a guy) considerably less blessed in the looks department than the other two will, on occasion, be selected; presumably for entertainment value. It could well be that the contestants haven't met the member/s of the opposite sex before the show is filmed, but they've certainly been informed as to the questions and the 'correct' responses to which. It also, as the other poster hinted, is a tad suspicious when at least one of the hopefuls displays a characteristic/trait that the girl/guy choosing states as one of their pet hates. All very amusing and entertaining (if you've a mental age lower than five, and hence lack the intelligence to see through).Invariably, also, the 'happy' couple tend not to get on too well, with the girl in particular usually complaining about one or several of the guy's habits, upon their return. I believe that only ever one couple has been made through the show (a pair that got married). Still: it could be worse, and it's harmless; probably appeals to morons, though.

I did enjoy watching BLIND DATE when it first broadcast in the mid 80s . In fact it was often a topic of conversation between my work mates and myself on a Monday morning: " Hey see Blind Date on Saturday ? See that guy that bird got ? what a geek " But I very quickly ended up hating the show . It`s painfully obvious that the questions and answers are written in advance and are delivered without any conviction : " What-job-would-I-like?- I-would-like-to-be-a-mechanic-so-I-could-service-your-body-work " At the end of last year presenter Cilla Black announced on the show that she would be leaving . I`m sure many millions of viewers left the show round about 1990

Everything that's bad about TV. And the public too. A dulled-up bint will walk down the steps & say to Cilla "If there's one thing I hate it's Mummys boys, men who wear Orange and ... erm, blokes who eat banana's" or something stupid like that. Cue three gormless blokes to be led out on stage and yep, you got it, one's a Mummys boy, one's in an orange suit & the other one's got a bunch of bananas in his hand.One poor sod who was a contestant a few years back was crucified by the show & the media as he went on a supposedly singles show but had a girlfriend. I know of at least half a dozen people who've been daft enough to go on Blind Date, every one of which was in a relationship at the time.It's well past what sell by date it ever had.