On this blog I talk a lot about best places to go in London, give advice on various aspects of dating, highlight some of our events, give more advice on dating and hopefully entertain you along the way.
At the bottom of each blog you’ll always find a link to our events that in some way relate to what I’m writing about.
However, a strange thing happened the other day. I was catching up with a friend and the subject got around to work. She pointed out that she really enjoyed my blog, awaited new posts with a gleeful anticipation and thought they were instructive and funny.
Head suitably swelled I felt pretty good about things. Until she added… ‘But I still have no idea what Original Dating do!’ This came as a bit of a shock. I assumed that the blog was a way to engage audiences in exactly what we do. Apparently not.
So today's blog is doing away with the coy link at the bottom of the page to our events. Instead here’s an out and out guide to what fills our day, and hopefully, fills a small part of the lives of the busy London single.
Speed Dating
You know how it works. Up to 20 people split equally between men and women. Four minute dates. A great venue. A secure online and app based matching system. And we run one of these pretty much every night of the week.
However, there’s quite a bit more that we also do.
Take for example literary speed dating. Same basic premise but the ice breaker is you bring a book to open the conversation. We were the first in the UK to introduce this as a regular event and, we’re proud to say, it’s one of our most popular.
Then there’s a combination of two great British traditions - being single and pub quizzes. Again, Original Dating were the first in the country to introduce Quiz Dating and, after a few years break, it’s back more popular than ever.
Teams of three guys and three girls compete for the title of Quiz Dating Kings or Queens. After each round of 5 questions, guys teams move on to the next table. And what pub quiz would be complete without prizes?
We’ve got plenty more ‘speed dating’ formats in the pipeline, almost all of them being the first of their kind. This is why we’re called ‘Original’ Dating. See what we did there?
But aside from traditional and non-traditional speed dating we also like a big party. Every year the most anticipated events are our summer lock and key parties.
The first is Summer in The City. Great venue, plenty of outdoor space to soak up the rays, short try out speed date sessions and our lock and key ice breaker with prizes. Plus, awesome cocktails, chilled background music and 200 like-minded singles. What’s not to like?
Fancy something a little more nautical? Then you need our Rock The Boat parties (tickets coming soon). This time up to 300 single folk, live band, try out speed date sessions, lock and key ice breaker with prize draw, great outdoor deck and plenty of indoor space (with dance floor - just for me).
Oh, and what’s the point of being on the Thames if you can’t enjoy the scenery? The boat takes in some of London’s most classic riverside views from Parliament all the way up to Millennium Dome.
Perhaps something a little more relaxed is in order. For that we have our occasional mid-week socials. Between 80-120 professional Londoners in some of this city’s finest establishments treated to exclusive bar access, our professional conversationalists just to make sure everyone gets introduced, and the easiest way to meet without the pressure of a formalised ice breaker.
Right. What next? Well, wine tasting events are an occasional feature; we run dating nights for specific ethnic and cultural backgrounds; and different age groups; food! You like food…
The easiest way to explain it is this: We’re Original Dating. We take that name very seriously. We’ve been running singles events in London since 2003 and know that, while we’re probably the *ahem* best in town at running straight forward speed date nights, Londoners are a demanding lot. Innovation is key.
If you can think of a great new way to get like minded single Londoner’s together we’ve probably done it, are doing it, or it’s in our secret dating bat cave pipeline. All you need to do is check back here to be the first to find out what’s going on.
We promise you won’t be disappointed.
WORDS BY JOHN DAVIS