The Undateables

Last updated

The Undateables
Genre Reality
Voices of Sally Phillips
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series11
No. of episodes53 (to 9 April 2020)
Production
Production companyBetty
Original release
Network Channel 4
Release3 April 2012 (2012-04-03) 
9 April 2020 (2020-04-09)

The Undateables is a British reality television series that follows a range of people on dates who have long term conditions, including: disabilities, developmental disorders, neurodevelopmental conditions, and learning difficulties. The series worked in conjunction with the dating agency, Flame Introductions, and was broadcast on Channel 4. Fifty-three main episodes aired since the documentary first aired on 3 April 2012, split into 11 separate series. The documentary has been narrated by Sally Phillips throughout.

Contents

Transmissions

SeriesStart dateEnd dateEpisodes
13 April 201217 April 20123
28 January 20135 February 20135
39 January 201430 January 20144
45 January 20152 February 20155
54 January 20161 February 20165
62 January 201730 January 20175
711 September 20179 October 20175
821 December 201729 January 20185
910 September 201818 December 20185
109 January 201917 December 20196
1111 March 20209 April 20205

Episodes

Series 1

EpisodeTitleOriginal air date
1Luke & Lucy3 April 2012
2Justin & Shaine10 April 2012
3Hadyn & Sam17 April 2012

Series 2

EpisodeTitleOriginal air date
1Michael, Brent & Sarah8 January 2013
2Sam, Ray & Steve15 January 2013
3Kate, Damian & Oliver22 January 2013
4Heather, Gareth & Matthew29 January 2013
5The Undateables – Revisit5 February 2013

Series 3

EpisodeTitleOriginal air date
1Mary, Daniel & Hayley9 January 2014
2John, Ruth & Zoe16 January 2014
3Michael, Ray, Brent, Kate & Steve23 January 2014
4Sam, Shaine, Richard & Justin30 January 2014

Series 4

EpisodeTitleOriginal air date
1Alex, Matthew & Daniella5 January 2015
2Tim, Ali & Alec12 January 2015
3Richard, Chris & Christina19 January 2015
4Ruth, Daniel & Michael Revisited26 January 2015
5Two Weddings and a Baby2 February 2015

Series 5

EpisodeTitleOriginal air date
1James, Tammy & Tom4 January 2016
2James, Lucas & Tom11 January 2016
3George, David & Bethany18 January 2016
4Holiday Romance25 January 2016
5Wedding Bells1 February 2016

Series 6

EpisodeTitleOriginal air date
1Sam, Kate & Ian2 January 2017
2Eddie, Lily & Pani9 January 2017
3Jamie, Luke & Lizzie16 January 2017
4Shaine, Alex & Ray23 January 2017
5Richard, James, Tom & Daniel30 January 2017

Series 7

EpisodeTitleOriginal air date
1Jason, Souleyman & Charley11 September 2017
2Kaia, Rhys & Joshua18 September 2017
3Sam, Katy & Donovan25 September 2017
4Richard, Lizzie, Eddie & Sam2 October 2017
5Shaine, Lily, Ray & George9 October 2017

Series 8

EpisodeTitleOriginal air date
1Daniel, Shaine, Ray & Sam21 December 2017
2Luke, Sam & Becky8 January 2018
3Nisar, Daniel & Fatima15 January 2018
4Amber, Richard & Nick22 January 2018
5Alex, Jason & Tom29 January 2018

Series 9

EpisodeTitleOriginal air date
1Charlotte, Mitch & James10 September 2018
2Rory, Roland & Molly17 September 2018
3Jordan, Paige & Sam24 September 2018
4Ray, Jason & Luke Revisit1 October 2018
5Christmas: A Festive Proposal18 December 2018

Series 10

EpisodeTitleOriginal air date
1Michael, Tobi & Emily9 January 2019
2Tom, Esther & Thomas16 January 2019
3Ray, Becky, Shaine & James23 January 2019
4Daniel, Rhys, Richerd, Rory30 January 2019
5Francesco, Feron & Alex13 March 2019
6The Undateables at Christmas 201917 December 2019

Series 11

EpisodeTitleOriginal air date
1Nicholas, Sam and Shantae11 March 2020
2Sam, Jodie and Hannah18 March 2020
3Rory, Lily, Jordan and Nicholas25 March 2020
4Charlotte, Richard, Alex and Sam1 April 2020
5Miles Littlechild speed dating9 April 2020

Additional episodes

TitleDuration
Extra: What We Learnt About Love4 minutes
Extra: A Guide to Dating4 minutes

Controversy

Early controversy was generated from newspapers such as The Mirror and The Guardian, due to the word "undateable" being used in the title to describe people with mental and physical disabilities. Channel 4 claimed that the title of the series is based upon society's preconceptions of these people. [1] The Undateables faced significant backlash from doctors who branded the show "offensive" and "exploitative".[ citation needed ] Dr. Rachael Pickering said that the series had left her "disturbed at being part of a society that might seek to view disabled people as a source of comedy". She also spoke with the BMA (British Medical Association) annual representatives about the danger of patients being exploited by the TV documentary. [2] In an interview with Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield on This Morning , two stars of the then-upcoming fifth series, Tammy and James, responded to the assertions, with Tammy stating that she found it "quite insulting" that she "would be exploited in any way." She added, "Just because I’m disfigured, I’m not stupid." [3]

Awards and nominations

YearAssociationCategoryNominee(s)Result
2014 BAFTA Television Award [4] TV Programme of the YearThe UndateablesNominated
2017Diversity in Media AwardsTV Programme of the YearThe UndateablesNominated

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References

  1. Ryan, Frances (2 April 2012). "The Undateables? Disability rights, but Channel 4 wrongs". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 October 2018.
  2. McGeorge, Alistair (24 June 2015). "The Undateables branded 'offensive' and exploitative by doctors". mirror. Retrieved 29 October 2018.
  3. Kitchener, Shaun (4 January 2016). "'It's insulting' The Undateables stars rubbish 'exploitation' claims ahead of new series". Daily Express. Retrieved 29 October 2018.
  4. "Bafta TV awards 2014: Winners in full". BBC News. 18 May 2014. Retrieved 28 April 2017.