The Blind Date couple who married in front of millions

Sue’s friends submit a letter without her knowledge, saying she wants to go on TV’s biggest dating show.

Alex was at work when one of his coworkers walked in with papers in the air. Instead of auditing payroll, he spent the afternoon filling out applications.

It’s been 40 years since TV juggernaut Blind Date first aired, and Sue and Alex Tatham were the first couple who met on the show to get married in a ceremony broadcast in front of almost 17 million people.

Both of them said that they did not go to the show looking for love, but they found love there and are now married for 34 years.

Blind Date was followed by a number of modern dating shows based on a similar concept, including Love Is Blind, First Dates, and even Love Island.

Now, Blind Date is set to relaunch on Disney+, “reimagined for contemporary audiences,” according to the streaming site.

So, how successful can a blind date be?

In 1985, Cilla Black hosted the pilot episode of a shiny new show inspired by America’s concept called “The Dating Game.”

It dominated Saturday-night TV, with millions of viewers tuning in to watch one person choose a date from three suitors hidden behind a screen.

When Sue came on a blind date, finding a boyfriend was not her priority.

“It was because it was all so new – the birth of reality TV,” she said. “It was exciting and that’s why I really wanted to go, to see what it was all like. Was it as glamorous as it looked? No!”

Alex said that Blind Date was “a very hot TV show at the time. So it would be a bit like now, if someone was saying, who wants to be on Love Island?”

About six months after applying, Sue and Alex were called to audition – Sue in Birmingham, Alex in London.

“They asked me questions like ‘If you were a fruit, what would you be?’ Sue remembered. “What kind of animal would you be?”

Both Alex and Sue were given a slot to appear on the show, but Alex could not come. Sue had also reassigned her position.

Sue said she spent the day with the other two girls chosen by Alex, getting to know them well – and neither she nor Alex were allowed to have friends in the audience in case they would influence their decisions.

She also recalled the team’s efforts to ensure that she and Alex did not bump into each other before filming, which meant diving into her wardrobe if she was walking down the aisle.

“Great, I thought – this really is a surprise!”

Sue said, “It was a long old day, but an exciting one. And Silla wandered around for a while.”

“Coming to you in curlers, that puts you at ease,” Alex said.

Sue and the other women chosen by Alex were given their questions in advance.

They wrote answers which were scanned and edited. “One of them – and it definitely wasn’t me – the question was about going to Australia and she said, ‘I would like you to put suntan lotion on the parts I can’t reach.’

“And he said no, you can’t say that – he was out! It shows perhaps how much attitudes have changed today,” Sue said.

According to the official Cilla Black website, British television monitors were initially concerned about the sexual connotations of Blind Date – but Cilla’s participation reassured them.

Alex remembered that the “illusion of television” was immediately shattered when he saw the sliding door on the set, which was used to separate the selector and the three likes.

“The sliding door, which looks very attractive – it’s basically a person dragging a piece of cardboard on the back.”

Alex said, “When I picked number two Sue from the West Midlands, I had no idea why I did it.” “It was just a mini mini moe.”

In the show, newlywed couples chose their first date activity at random. Sue and Alex find a medieval feast in Ireland. The couple said they were put up in hotels five miles away.

“At the end of the date, we said we’d like to go to a nightclub,” Sue said. “We were getting along very well.”

Then when they asked the production team, the answer was no, the date was over and they had to go back to their separate hotel.

“I think these days, they basically film you in the same room!” Alex said. “This reflects a big change in reality TV.”

If a couple was having a good relationship, Cilla would ask, “Do I need to buy a new hat?” Well, in Alex and Sue’s case, she did – a smart blue number.

Talking about the discussion with the team at Blind Date, Alex said, “When we first said we were going to get married, they were very cool about it.” “They said ‘Oh, we’d love to take video of you coming out of the church.'”

Finally, he said there were a lot of TV crews, police and thousands of people outside the church.

Sue and Alex married in a special episode titled ‘Blind Date Wedding of the Year’ broadcast on London Weekend Television.

“Imagine you’re nervous about giving a best man or groom’s speech in front of 300 of your best friends,” Alex said. “Then imagine making it in front of millions of people.

“It was an amazing day. It allowed us to invite everyone we’d ever met to our wedding, which helped too.

“They wore the brightest clothes they could because you wanted to get your face on TV. It looked like a really cool version of Songs of Praise.”

“We found we had a lot in common,” Alex said. “I think as you grow together, as any couple does, you find that you really start to share a set of values.

“Open honesty is the best thing,” Sue said. “And be kind.”

“Once you have someone with the same values, boyfriend or girlfriend, no matter how you met, it’s a really good foundation for any relationship,” Alex said.

“I think the love of family is a really important factor. Caring for every part of the family and friends. Ambitions to get ahead in life, the joy of going out and having a good time.

“She’s sensitive and kind, a wonderful mother and yet extremely beautiful. In fact most people love her, so it wasn’t difficult for me. I’m lucky I chose her.

“To this day, we say we love each other very much – and we still do.”

Additional reporting by Cath Paddison