Dates (TV series)

Last updated

Dates
DatesTitle.jpg
Genre Drama
Written by Bryan Elsley
Directed by John Maybury
Opening theme"Chloe" by Hannah Peel [1]
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes9 (list of episodes)
Production
Producer Bradley Adams
Chris Clough
Harry Enfield
Production locationLondon
Running time30 min
Production companyBalloon Entertainment Ltd.
Original release
Network Channel 4
Release10 June (2013-06-10) –
3 July 2013 (2013-07-03)

Dates is a British television romantic drama series created by Bryan Elsley, who also created Skins , [2] which first aired on Channel 4 on 10 June 2013, at 22:00 (BST), [3] as part of its "Mating Season" programming, [4] [5] illustrating a series of first dates between online dating service users. [6] The show's target audience is "ABC1". [3]

Contents

Plot

Set in London, each episode focuses on one date.

Production

Creator Bryan Elsley conceived the idea of Dates between December 2011 and January 2012, stating "a date is a very complex and grown up interaction between two people. It's a complex language that everyone understands. Everyone knows the difficulty of spending an hour or so in someone's company that you haven't met before. It seemed to be that there was an almost infinite range of possibilities that could flow from that. So dramatically it became very attractive". [7] Dates was commissioned and approved by Channel 4 in September 2012. [8]

Dates was filmed in London during the first quarter of 2013. [9]

Cast

Dates features numerous up-and-coming and more established British and Irish actors and actresses. [10] [11]

To promote the series and to provide further background knowledge, Channel 4 has created a series of fake online dating profiles for each of the main characters. [12]

Episodes

No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateU.K. viewers
(millions) [13]
1"Mia and David" John Maybury Bryan Elsley 10 June 2013 (2013-06-10)2.19
Northern lorry driver David arrives at a restaurant to meet Celeste with whom he has arranged a date via the Internet. 'Celeste' arrives but is actually called Mia and proceeds to be offensive to him and the waitress. She eventually drops her guard and finds herself enjoying herself with David whilst he talks about himself. He discloses that he has 4 children, and his wife has died. Mia excuses herself and leaves for the toilet but leaves the restaurant without telling him. Later, David bumps into her as she is hailing a taxi where they kiss before she flees.
2"Jenny and Nick" Charles Sturridge Nancy Harris 11 June 2013 (2013-06-11)1.62
Jenny, a shy teacher from Rotherham, meets super-confident city trader Nick in a London wine bar. She is nervous and talkative, he is bluff and full of himself though he does confess that his promiscuity wrecked his marriage. Then he takes a phone call from work and leaves the room. He is gone a long time so Jenny follows and discovers him having sex with the waiter in the toilet. She gets her revenge by stealing his wallet.
3"Mia and Stephen" John Maybury Ben Schiffer 12 June 2013 (2013-06-12)1.38
Mia meets another date, superficially self-assured surgeon Stephen, though she shocks him by telling him that when she was an escort girl, he paid her for sex. Stephen wants to leave but Mia reminds him that they are on a date and as the date progresses, they wind up having sex in an alley before moving on to a pub. He gets a call from his hospital to say that he is needed and takes Mia with him, her unexpected kindness to a dying patient leaving him feeling confused.
4"Erica and Kate"Philippa LangdaleJamie Chan18 June 2013 (2013-06-18)1.46
Erica, a closeted lesbian who cannot tell her traditional Chinese family, meets the openly gay Kate in a bar and, although Kate is annoyed to find that Erica has been with men, they go to a hotel for sex. Next morning Kate is scathing when Erica tells her she is afraid to come out to her family, but they still agree to meet for brunch. During the argument Erica takes a call from her brother and as the two women make their next date Erica realises she had never hung up on her brother. The episode ends with her brother telling her that she cannot do what she is doing.
5"David and Ellie"Sarah WalkerLaura Hunter19 June 2013 (2013-06-19)1.28
On his thirty-fourth birthday David meets Ellie and they go out to dinner. However, Ellie appears to be much younger than she claims to be. Later, when a friend from university comes over to speak to her, she tells David that she is only (nineteen-year-old) student. She is nonetheless very mature for her age and, having heard David talking about Mia, makes contact with her and eventually takes David to her flat, where Mia and David reconcile.
6"Erica and Callum"Philippa Langdale Jamie Brittain 25 June 2013 (2013-06-25)1.13
Erica meets Callum in a Chinese restaurant. He is a brash, self-opinionated slob who thinks she should fancy him. However, when she tells him that she is gay and only went on the date to please her brother Tony, who wants to 'turn' her straight he is sympathetic and they get drunk together - so drunk in fact that Callum gets out of hand and Erica calls Tony. Tony pays off the restaurant staff to not file any charges against Callum and Callum gets up to leave. Before he goes he urges Erica to stand up for herself. The episode ends with Erica more forcefully telling her brother she is gay and going for a drink with Callum in a happier mood.
7"Stephen and Mia" Paul Andrew Williams Bryan Elsley26 June 2013 (2013-06-26)1.03
Stephen arranges to meet Mia for afternoon sex at a hotel but she rings to say she is not coming. He falls in with a conference of local government officers and is mistaken for a speaker from Scotland. While maintaining the pretence he befriends Heidi. Stephen separates Heidi from the group and while flirting with one another she informs Stephen that she is separated from her husband. They embark on a playful swim in the hotel pool which almost turns into sex before Stephen gets a phone call from his hospital. Heidi learns of his ruse and gets up to leave. The episode ends with Stephen being told he is a good kisser and Stephen telling Heidi she looks hot.
8"Jenny and Christian"Charles SturridgeNancy Harris2 July 2013 (2013-07-02)1.00
Jenny goes on another date and appears to hit it off with Christian as they both find the exhibits in the art gallery very pretentious. He is sympathetic as she recalls doomed previous dates and her ex-fiancé's marriage. Although he belongs to a religious group and she is an atheist she finds him wholly charming, and they return to his flat for afternoon sex. Unfortunately, he has omitted to tell Jenny something very important about himself - as she discovers when his wife walks in on them. The episode ends with Christian begging Jenny to let him stay in her apartment overnight. Jenny pushes back and walks away from Christian feeling happier in herself.
9"Mia and David"Charles SturridgeBen Schiffer3 July 2013 (2013-07-03)0.90
Mia is supposed to meet David's kids for the first time, but she arrives late irking David and she discloses she's unprepared to meet his family. David storms off and Mia rings Stephen who surprisingly arrives with his eleven-year-old son. Stephen convinces Mia to stay, and they all play Jenga together. She enjoys herself and when Stephen's son leaves, the couple returns to her apartment where they find a drunken injured David. Stephen fixes David's injury and then departs after kissing Mia. David comes clean to Mia that he has feelings for her, after which she reveals personal stories from her life. The episode ends with David agreeing with Mia that it was too soon to meet his children and to keep the relationship on a fun level.

Reception

Dates has been critically well received thus far. Tom Sutcliffe from The Independent wrote, "the writer who wants to leave an impression behind will always be tugged towards a gratifying finish. Credit due to Bryan Elsley, then, for ending the first of Dates, a series of dramas about modern relationships, with an ambiguity". [14]

Of the first episode, Gerard O'Donovan of The Telegraph wrote, "It was enjoyable, I didn't just want more, I couldn't wait to see how successive episodes would link and weave into a format so unforgivingly dependent on great writing and acting. Suffice to say, in a game of snog, marry or avoid, Dates is definitely a keeper". [6]

Lucy Mangan of The Guardian called the first episode "a little nugget of bliss" [15] and commended the show for its realism and its "beauty" in its screenplay and acting. [15]

Paul Naylor of Express & Star deemed that the execution of the first episode was "classy". [16]

Of the first three episodes, The Scotsman wrote, "Elsley is attempting to say something meaningful about the guises we adopt at our most vulnerable and desperate. It's an unedifying portrait of human nature at somewhere near its worst: a cynical blast of rotten candour. Whether Elsley and his fellow writers actually like their characters is a moot point, but I can't deny the voyeuristic impact of these superbly performed chamber pieces". [17]

Writing for The Spectator , Clarissa Tan said that the show's "smartness gets wearying after a while". She criticised episode four on the basis that a lesbian coming out narrative "is quite thin as plots go, but not as thin as the sheets that she and her new lover Kate are under for most of the show". Tan concluded that the characters are "tropes rather than people", "a congregation of characteristic, a multitude of attitudes". [18]

International broadcast

In Australia, the series premiered on 16 February 2015 on BBC First [19] and was watched by 21,000 viewers. [20]

U.S. Ratings

The CW aired nine episodes of the show in 2015. [21]

Season 1

EpisodeAir dateA18-49 Rating/ShareViewers (Millions)
Mia and David9 July 20150.2/10.69 [22]
Jenny and Nick9 July 20150.1/10.51 [22]
Mia and Steven16 July 20150.1/10.54 [23]
Erica and Kate16 July 20150.1/00.47 [23]
David and Ellie23 July 20150.1/00.55 [24]
Erica and Callum23 July 20150.1/00.53 [24]
Stephen and Mia30 July 20150.1/10.55 [25]
Jenny and Christian30 July 20150.2/10.55 [25]
Mia and David6 August 20150.2/10.45 [26]

Spin-offs and adaptations

Entertainment One and Bryan Elsley have partnered to release a companion e-book to the television series. [27]

In 2015 Cites, a Catalan-language adaptation was first broadcast by TV3. [28] Like its British predecessor, it follows encounters between couples who meet through an online dating app. However, the 45-minute episodes feature two separate dates, distinguishing it from Dates, which focuses on a single couple per episode. With the exception of three episodes, the scripts in Cites are original. A second season aired in 2016. [29]

In October 2022, Prime Video, in collaboration with TV3, announced a third season under the title Cites Barcelona, which was released in June 2023 with six episodes. [30] Series creator Pau Freixas returned as executive producer and director. A fourth season was confirmed in March 2024. [31]

Related Research Articles

<i>Rules of Engagement</i> (TV series) American television sitcom (2007–2013)

Rules of Engagement is an American sitcom television series created by Tom Hertz that ran on CBS from February 5, 2007, to May 20, 2013, originally airing as a mid-season replacement. The series was produced by Adam Sandler's Happy Madison Productions in association with CBS Television Studios and Sony Pictures Television.

<i>Kath & Kim</i> (American TV series) American television sitcom

Kath & Kim, commonly written as Kath and Kim and uncommonly abbreviated as K&K is an American television sitcom adapted from the Australian television series of the same name created by Jane Turner and Gina Riley and well-supported by Magda Szubanski, with their titular roles being portrayed in this series by Molly Shannon and Selma Blair. The series premiered on NBC on October 9, 2008. Turner and Riley served as executive producers and consultants on this version, which was co-produced through Reveille Productions and Universal Media Studios.

Friends with Benefits is an American romantic sitcom television series created by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber that aired on NBC from August 5 to September 9, 2011. It was originally set to air on as a mid-season replacement during the 2010–11 television season, but was ultimately delayed until summer. The series ended after twelve episodes aired with the thirteenth being only available on iTunes, Amazon.com, and Netflix.

<i>Penn & Teller: Fool Us</i> American magic competition television series

Penn & Teller: Fool Us is a magic competition television series in which magicians perform tricks in front of American magician-comedian duo Penn & Teller. Its first two seasons were hosted by Jonathan Ross, the third through ninth seasons were hosted by Alyson Hannigan and the tenth season by Brooke Burke. Fool Us was filmed at Fountain Studios in London, England and the Penn & Teller Theater at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino, located in Las Vegas. After each performance, if Penn & Teller cannot figure out how a trick was done, the magician(s) who performed it win a Fool Us trophy and a five-star trip to Las Vegas to perform as the opening act in Penn & Teller's show, also at the Rio Hotel & Casino.

<i>Hart of Dixie</i> American comedy-drama television series

Hart of Dixie is an American comedy-drama television series that aired on The CW from September 26, 2011, to March 27, 2015. The series, created by Leila Gerstein, stars Rachel Bilson as Dr. Zoe Hart, a New Yorker who, after her dreams of becoming a heart surgeon fall apart, accepts an offer to work as a general practitioner in the fictional Gulf Coast town of Bluebell, Alabama.

<i>Extreme Weight Loss</i> 2011 American TV series or program

Extreme Weight Loss was a television program on ABC that premiered on May 30, 2011. The show was formally a spin-off of the Extreme Makeover franchise, where individuals receive life-changing makeovers.

<i>NYC 22</i> 2012 American police procedural drama television series

NYC 22 is an American police procedural drama television series that aired on CBS from April 15 to August 11, 2012, as a mid-season replacement for CSI: Miami. On May 13, 2012, CBS canceled the series after one season.

<i>Last Resort</i> (TV series) American military drama television series

Last Resort is an American military drama television series that aired on ABC from September 27, 2012, to January 24, 2013. The series was created by Shawn Ryan and Karl Gajdusek, and produced by Sony Pictures Television. On November 16, 2012, ABC announced that the series would not be picked up for another season, and the show finished with its original 13 episodes.

<i>The Vampire Diaries</i> season 4 Season of television series

The Vampire Diaries, an American supernatural drama, was renewed for a fourth season by the U.S. channel The CW on May 3, 2012, seven days before the third season's finale. Unlike the previous seasons that aired in September, it premiered on October 11, 2012, to avoid competition from major television shows. Season 4 consisted of 23 episodes instead of the usual 22 episodes.

The eighth season of American talent show competition series America's Got Talent was broadcast on NBC from June 4 to September 18, 2013. Following the previous season, Sharon Osbourne left the program following a dispute with the network, leading to Mel B replacing her. The judging panel was expanded with Heidi Klum serving as a fourth judge. Along with these changes, the live rounds for this season were moved to Radio City Music Hall in New York.

<i>Resurrection</i> (American TV series) 2014 American TV series

Resurrection is an American fantasy drama television series that aired from March 9, 2014, to January 25, 2015, on ABC. It is based on Jason Mott's 2013 novel The Returned, and is centered on a town in which dead people come back to life. It was co-produced by ABC Studios and Plan B Entertainment, led by Brad Pitt, Aaron Zelman, JoAnn Alfano, Jon Liebman, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Michele Fazekas, and Tara Butters.

The Winner Is is an American singing competition television series which aired on NBC. Hosted by Nick Lachey, the seven-episode series featured singers of all ages competing for a chance to win $1,000,000. The concept of the show revolved around a series of "battles", in which two contestants compete for the votes of a jury consisting of 101 music professionals. The show premiered on June 10, 2013.

<i>American Idol</i> season 14 Season of television series

The fourteenth season of American Idol, also known as American Idol XIV, premiered on the Fox television network on January 7, 2015. Ryan Seacrest returned as host, while Harry Connick Jr., Jennifer Lopez, and Keith Urban returned as judges. Randy Jackson stepped down as the in-house mentor and was replaced by Scott Borchetta. Long-time sponsor Coca-Cola ended its relationship with the show.

Big Brother 17 is the seventeenth season of the American reality television series Big Brother. The season premiered on June 24, 2015 with a two-night premiere with the following episode airing on June 25, 2015, broadcast on CBS in the United States and Global in Canada. The season ended with a 90-minute season finale on September 23, 2015, following the fall season premiere of Survivor: Cambodia, after 98 days of competition. Julie Chen returned as host. On September 23, 2015, Steve Moses was crowned the winner defeating Liz Nolan in a 6-3 jury vote. James Huling was voted as the season's America's Favorite HouseGuest.

<i>American Ninja Warrior</i> season 7 Season of American reality/sport competition television series American Ninja Warrior

The seventh season of American Ninja Warrior premiered on NBC on May 25, 2015. Hosts Matt Iseman and Akbar Gbaja-Biamila returned for their respective sixth and third seasons while newcomer Kristine Leahy joined as sideline reporter, replacing Jenn Brown. In addition, this season's grand prize was increased from $500,000 to $1,000,000. The season concluded on September 14, 2015.

Home Free was an American television reality competition series that premiered on the Fox network on July 22, 2015. It featured couples competing to win a dream home. The series is hosted by Mike Holmes and Co hosted by His Son Mike Holmes Jr. The first season has 8 episodes. On March 21, 2016, it was announced that the series would return for a second season on Thursday, June 16 with a new twist and new co-host Tim Tebow.

References

  1. ↑ Beggars Music [@Beggarspub] (7 June 2013). "Listen out for Hannah Peel's wonderful new track Chloe on new Ch4 show Dates. Monday 10pm" (Tweet). Retrieved 13 June 2013– via Twitter.
  2. ↑ Wilson, Benji (10 June 2013). "Dates: a grown-up drama from the creator of Skins". The Telegraph. London. Retrieved 11 June 2013.
  3. 1 2 "Dates (Part of the Channel 4 Mating Season)". Channel 4 Sales. Archived from the original on 16 June 2013.
  4. ↑ "TV preview: Dates". Yorkshire Evening Post. 9 June 2013. Archived from the original on 16 August 2013. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  5. ↑ "Mating Season: Dates". Radio Times. 3 June 2013. Archived from the original on 27 June 2013. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  6. 1 2 O'Donovan, Gerard (10 June 2013). "Dates, Channel 4, review". The Telegraph. London.
  7. ↑ Creamer, Jon (10 June 2013). "Bryan Elsley on Channel 4's Dates". Televisual. Archived from the original on 28 May 2016. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  8. ↑ "Trio of New Dramas Commissioned by Channel 4!". 25 September 2012. Archived from the original on 16 June 2013. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  9. ↑ "Channel 4 WLTM... (Would Like to Meet)". Channel 4. 5 February 2013.
  10. ↑ Doran, Sarah (5 February 2013). "Ireland's Own: Sherlock's Andrew Scott and Merlin's Katie McGrath are set for Dates". Entertainment.ie.
  11. ↑ Baldock, Luke Ryan (9 May 2013). "Rising Star Gemma Chan Discusses Her New Show Dates". The Hollywood News.
  12. ↑ Wilken, Selina (2 June 2013). "Fake online dating profiles revealed for Dates stars Katie McGrath, Oona Chaplin, more". Hypable.
  13. ↑ "BARB Top 30s".
  14. ↑ Tom Sutcliffe (11 June 2013). "TV review: Dates, Channel 4 -Bryan Elsley's new drama about modern relationships". The Independent. London.
  15. 1 2 Mangan, Lucy (11 June 2013). "The Fall; Dates: TV review". The Guardian. London.
  16. ↑ Naylor, Paul (11 June 2013). "TV review: Dates". Express & Star.
  17. ↑ "TV preview: The Returned/Dates/Agatha Christie's Poirot". The Scotsman. 8 June 2013.
  18. ↑ Tan, Clarissa (22 June 2013). "Television review: Channel 4's mating season". The Spectator. Retrieved 4 July 2013.
  19. ↑ "February: 150+ new and returning shows, movies and sport events". Foxtel. 6 February 2015. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  20. ↑ "Ratings: Monday 16th February 2015". Mediaspy. Archived from the original on 25 July 2015. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
  21. ↑ Wagmeister, Elizabeth (23 February 2015). "The CW Adds Scripted British Comedy 'Dates' & Couples' Game Show to Summer Schedule". Variety . Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  22. 1 2 Thursday Final Ratings: ‘Under the Dome’ & ‘Food Fighters’ Adjusted Up - Ratings | TVbytheNumbers.Zap2it.com
  23. 1 2 Thursday Final Ratings: ‘Mistresses’ Adjusted Up; ‘Astronaut Wives Club’ Adjusted Down + No Adjustment for ‘Beauty and the Beast’ - Ratings | TVbytheNumbers.Zap2it.com
  24. 1 2 Thursday Final Ratings: 'Big Brother' Adjusted Up; No Adjustment to 'Wayward Pines' - Ratings | TVbytheNumbers.Zap2it.com
  25. 1 2 Thursday Final Ratings: 'Food Fighters' & 'Big Brother' Adjusted Up - Ratings | TVbytheNumbers.Zap2it.com
  26. ↑ Bibel, Sara (7 August 2015). "Thursday Final Ratings: 'Big Brother' Adjusted Up". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on 8 August 2015. Retrieved 8 August 2015.
  27. ↑ Padovano, Joanna (13 June 2013). "eOne to Release eBook Based on Dating Drama". WorldScreen.com.
  28. ↑ "Cites, la nueva serie de TV3 que mezcla el drama y la comedia romántica". La Vanguardia. 27 April 2015.
  29. ↑ "'Cites', la serie de TV3, vuelve para una segunda temporada". Fotogramas. 16 February 2016.
  30. ↑ "'Cites' renace en Amazon Prime Video con 'Citas Barcelona'". FormulaTV. 28 October 2022.
  31. ↑ "'Citas Barcelona' renueva para una segunda temporada". FormulaTV. 18 March 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.