You Chose That?

Blind Date - Pilot Episode 1985



Valentine's Day themed post time! Here is a newly uploaded rare clip of the pilot version of ITV dating show "Blind Date" from 1985. It's our "chuck" Cilla Black at the beginning of the peak of her powers shortly before "Blind Date" became a Saturday night primetime ratings jauggernaut. Forget about her singing career in the 1960s and 70s, this was her definitive moment. The user says there was an alternative version of the show being piloted, presented by comedian Duncan "Oooh, chase me" Norvelle. I think we're all glad who took the upper hand there. The clip begins with continuity from the old LWT ident (London Weekend Television).

The one major change between the pilot and the regular series, is the relatively nice, glazed-looking pink set with the magical door, is replaced with a terrible, placid dim brown with a streak of darker grimy brown stripes under a sky blue luminary above, and then there's the middle elbowing out, with an outline of a man's hooked nose. Also add to that, a catchphrase-less, slightly more subdued looking Cilla Black (less egomaniacal?) in a black transparent, silver frock. Now that sounds more exciting the way I've said it, but no.

It's believe by the owner of the clip, that the pilot episode was never fully shown on ITV, only highlight clips, presumably on nostalgia-reminiscing shows.

"Blind Date" was ITV's jewel in the crown from 1985-2003(18 series) for most of it's run. At it's peak in the 80s, the programme garnered 18 million viewers. The show was inspired by similar dating shows like "The Dating Game" in the US. Each episode would star a single and unattached male and female over the course of the show. They would seperately ask 3 members of the opposite sex questions, sitting on the other side of the sliding door. The choice of questions would be extremely flirtacious but good-natured. Question could be "If you were a flavour of ice cream, what would you be". Cue someone witha terrible pun. Were these answers scripted or thought-on-the-spot, that's what I would like to know.

The single man/lady would choose who they like the sound of best, and then suck in the joy/despair, as they their identities are revealed to one another. The couple would pick a card at random from Cilla, to choose their holiday, and would come back next week to tell the usually cringeworthy and incompatible goings-on, however for a few, it was the case of "Mr Right Meets Mrs Right". Cilla would try to tempt more out of the couple, after they confess the truth in a pre-recorded confession box-style interview, being shown to the other partner for the first time, with a camera on his/her face to show their reactions. Their time on holiday would What we all wanted to know was "Did you kiss?", as queried by Cilla. I can't put my finger on it, but why did all the couple only seem to kiss on holiday? Some couples must've had a good hard sh...

Cilla Black was not alone as the furniture of the show. We also had off-screen announcer Graham Skidmore, who would sum up witty comments about our 3 contestants who are trying to get lucky, ending it with the catchphrase "The Choice is Yours!"

By 2003, the show had run out of stream, was no longer seen as edgy light entertainment, and Cilla blurted out live on TV, it would be the last ever series. The show did try to modernise, with the "Ditch or Date" option, maybe that guy/woman she/he chose were more akin to breaking a mirror, however, it was a horrible new element to the show, but these were the times now. It felt though, like it was crapping all over the legacy of the show, and it didn't feel right with our Cilla on board. There were plans for a new presenter at the end of the run, but that's like trying to rip a shell off a Tortoise. Cilla was the show.