Speed dating
Meet loads of potential partners in one night. It's sooo Sex and the City, dahling.
Fast food, quick tickets, online supermarkets with home delivery, there's a torrent of products and services urging us to save time and effort. These quick fixes for the cash rich, time poor generation have even found their way into our personal and social lives. Speed dating, the latest craze to whizz its way across from the States, involves an evening of as many as 30 mini dates in an hour and a half.
What, where, when?
Speed dating takes advantage of that ultra-fast resource, the internet. A number of companies have set themselves up as speed dating organisers, using the web to register punters for their events, which involve large groups of men and women in equal numbers meeting at a central location. The format tends to go something like this: the women sit down and the men sit opposite for a date. After around three minutes of getting to know each other a whistle blows and the men move on to the next woman.
This continues until they've been round the whole room. Everyone has a scorecard, with a list of names and ID numbers for the opposite sex. The women tick the men they'd like to see again, the men do the same, and when you get a match the organiser will send you an email the next day with the email addresses of your matches. With your safe contact details revealed, either of you are free to make the next move and suggest another, perhaps slightly longer, date.
And why?
Ken Beckinger, CEO of HurryDate, who organises speed dating events in the US and London, believes the concept originated in LA. "It was started by a Rabbi as a way of helping Jewish singles to meet," he says, although others claim the gay community came up with the concept.
Ken feels the concept has taken off because these days the population is staying single much longer. Ben, from recent speed dating start-up Speeddater.co.uk, agrees that the younger are just not meeting the people they want to. When they do go out they stick to their own crowd of friends. They don't meet enough new people. And they're always so busy, especially in London, they don't have time to meet anyone new.
Hence the need for speed. And the need for alternative ways of dating. Speed dating is not the only new concept trying to get our twentysomethings coupled up: there's CV dinner parties, cyberdating in its various forms and numerous singles parties and events. Ben believes these events are for the serious dater but speed dating has more of an emphasis on fun. "Speed dating is mainstream, it's a normal night out. It's like going to a party and getting introduced to everyone there, as opposed to just going and talking to your mates. But you can come along with your mates and you'll have a laugh."
Ken is also keen to see the lighter side. "We don't tout HurryDate as a way of meeting your soul mate. We focus more on a great event where you have lots of fun."
Zoe, who went speed dating (reluctantly) with a couple of friends, agrees. "If you go you'll have a good time. Don't expect to meet the person of your dreams, go for the fun of it, practise your flirting and try being anyone for want to for three minutes."
What are they looking for?
How do our matchmakers respond to the charges that doing it all so quickly encourages people to judge on looks alone? Ken says, "You'd be surprised. the very attractive people aren't always the most popular. It is easy to get your personality across in three minutes." Good news if you're a little lacking in the looks department but what if your charming wit takes longer than three minutes to get warmed up? Ben says, "Of course you don't really get to know someone in that time, but you can decide who you want to see again. It's not the total answer to dating, but it's one aspect of the mix."
