MY DARK SECRET: HOW WINNING BLIND DATE CHANGED MY LIFE...

When I won the Xmas Blind Date TV show in 1994, I thought my life would become magical.

The truth was very different.

Firstly, the show is on YouTube so I don't need to mention what actually happens.

Americans will know The Dating Game - same format.

One picker chooses from 3 suitors who answer 3 questions and the winner takes them on a date.

Simple.

I will save all that for another day.

But, I did have a strategy for winning, I executed it and it worked.

I got picked by the hot chick and we went on a date to Lapland to meet Santa Claus, ride some reindeer etc.

I had a blast.

Again, that's not the point.

The show was great and ALL the people (even the lady who picked me and probably regretted her decision afterwards) were great.

It was the instant FAME that was weird.

Remember this was pre-internet, no camera-phones, no social media, no selfies and no influencers.

I had been a club DJ and BBC radio presenter before this so I was often recognized when I was out and about.

But nothing prepares you for this.

I was a recognizable celebrity for about a month and a local folk hero for about 6 months.

The day after part one of the show aired was Boxing Day and I went shopping with my mate Paul and a few of the lads to Newcastle shopping centre and I was ready for what happened next...

People stared.

Glassy eyed.

Some smiled, many uttered words to their friends but everyone who recognized me... just stared.

Nobody shared a comment or said 'Well done'.

Just staring in silence.

It was so weird.

It also taught me an invaluable lesson that will stay with me forever...

'Be careful what you wish for.'

My story had become public property and I had ONLY been on TV for 15 minutes.

On Christmas Day, people watched Blind Date on ITV after Top Of The Pops and The Queen's Speech before the James Bond movie.

Ask any Brit old enough to remember life before Facebook, cable and the launch of satellite.

We only had 4 main channels to watch.

It was also life BEFORE fake news, influencers or likes, comments and shares were a thing.

I felt freaked out and we went home and after the second episode aired (in which I was much cooler and looked a lot less desperate for a date), things calmed down and it was just a conversation piece over a beer whenever I was out on the town.

Nobody wanted to ask me about my thoughts, opinions, experiences and choices.

They didn't even care that I won. None of that mattered.

Just one question...

'What was Cilla like?'

Cilla Black was the legendary 60's pop-star and host of Blind Date for decades.

I leveraged it into some initial TV interest (MTV, The Big Breakfast, The Clothes Show and Don't Forget Your Toothbrush) created some DJing gigs and managed to get headhunted for a job as an entertainments manager in Dubai.

That's another story for another time.

So immediate household Z-list celebrity sucks.

I can't imagine what Johnny Depp, Amber Heard, Will Smith or anyone else featured in celebrity fake news goes through.

I actually had hoped that the attention would have got me a promotion at the BBC where I'd been a freelance journalist for 3 years.

It didn't.

They sacked me claiming they were letting me go and pursue 'other opportunities'...

After 9 months I'd had enough and took a job overseas in the UAE and left all my family and friends behind forever.

Fame had burned my fingers.

From now on, I would ONLY do this kind of thing on my terms.

Until I landed and discovered that expat Brits had their Christmas Day UK TV viewing sent across from their families on VHS every year.

It was my first night at work.

DJing a Back To School night.

Someone came up and asked me'..

'Aren't you that guy from Blind Date? What's Cilla like?'

Just for the record... Cilla was lovely.

So now you know.

Life lesson?

Be careful what you wish for...

Love to know your thoughts...

__________________________________________________________________

I'm Dave Crane. I mentor decision makers to speak onstage and become seen as Industry Icons with an amazing message and personal brand alongside my Game Changers global community.

I'm also an award winning international motivational keynote speaker who hosts premium events like T20 Cricket World Cup, Rugby World Cup Sevens and World Metaverse conferences.

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