Channel 10 snatches romance reality show First Dates from Channel Seven

Channel 10 has snatched romance reality show First Dates from Channel Seven, which last aired a new episode in March 2020.

On Thursday night, Channel 10 put out an on-air casting call for the series that sees strangers looking for love on blind dates.

The network said it wants contestants who are ‘genuinely looking for love’, indicating a desire to move away from wannabe actors and social media influencers.

Changing hands: Channel 10 has snatched romance reality show First Dates from Channel Seven, which last aired a new episode in March 2020

First Dates premiered on Channel Seven in February 2016 and ran for four seasons.

The debut season was a success, averaging 870,000 metro viewers in prime time.

It lost traction throughout its four-year run, with the 2020 season averaging just 424,000 metro viewers – well below prime-time benchmarks.

Call-out: On Thursday night, Channel 10 put out an on-air casting call for the series that sees strangers looking for love on blind dates

Seven still airs regular repeats of First Dates on its multichannels and 7plus.

The timing of Channel 10’s acquisition comes as a surprise, given the fact the network’s flagship dating show The Bachelor is suffering record low ratings. 

Season nine starring Jimmy Nicholson is averaging just 421,000 metro viewers, a worrying decline for a show that routinely topped one million viewers a few years ago.

Genuine: The network said it wants contestants who are ‘genuinely looking for love’, indicating a desire to move away from wannabe actors and social media influencers

Bachelor franchise star Abbie Chatfield recently offered her thoughts on why this season has performed so badly in the ratings.  

The 26-year-old, who was the runner-up on Matt Agnew’s season two years ago, was asked about the low ratings on Hit Hobart’s Jimmy and Nath on Tuesday.

She insisted Jimmy, 31, wasn’t to blame for the failure, and instead suggested the female contestants had turned viewers off. 

Flop: The timing of Channel 10’s acquisition comes as a surprise, given the fact the network’s flagship dating show The Bachelor is suffering record low ratings. Pictured: Jimmy Nicholson

The problem, she argued, was casting two dozen women remotely via Zoom. 

 ‘If I’m being honest – Channel 10 might kill me for this – but maybe it’s [because] the casting process was ruined by Covid,’ she said. 

She also noted that the show was ‘slow to start’, which may have caused viewers to tune out after the first few episodes.

Hot take: Abbie Chatfield recently offered her thoughts on why Jimmy Nicholson’s season of The Bachelor has performed so badly in the ratings this year

Channel 10 was forced last week to deny claims The Bachelor was being axed as the show continues to record the lowest ratings in the franchise’s eight-year history.

A well-placed insider told Daily Mail Australia the program’s future hangs in the balance as viewers tune out in favour of other reality dating shows.

The series will ‘inevitably’ be cancelled, they said, if Brooke Blurton’s upcoming season of The Bachelorette doesn’t see a significant boost in ratings. 

‘The casting process was ruined’: The 26-year-old insisted Jimmy (pictured) wasn’t to blame for the failure, and instead suggested the female contestants had turned viewers off