Farmer Wants a Wife
Contents |
Host
Not known (voiceover, 2001)
Louise Redknapp (2009)
Co-hosts
Catherine Gee (2001)
Broadcast
Thames for ITV1, 8 November to 20 December 2001 (7 episodes in 1 series)
TalkbackThames for Five, 16 September to 21 October 2009 (6 episodes in 1 series)
Synopsis
Rural dating show which originally grew out of a competition/campaign devised by Country Life magazine. The original series was really more of a straight matchmaking show without much of a game element; it came and went in the autumn of 2001 and nobody thought much more about it. However, with a competitive makeover, the format went on to sell well into other countries (apparently the Dutch version in particular was a massive ratings winner) and after a few fairly low-key copycat shows (Dirty Cows, Desperately Seeking Sheila) it eventually found its way back onto British screens after an eight-year gap.
Yes, that arm has just been where you think it has.The new series has a bit more of an elimination aspect to it, though with its self-contained episodes it's still closer to the original British format than to the Bachelor-style reality show seen around the world. And it's still quite low-key and, if we're honest, not actually that interesting.
Music
Matt Coldrick (2001)
Barry Gleddon, Richard Kimmings, Kes Loy and Audio Network (2009)
Trivia
E4 aired the Australian version from 3 October 2022. Almost as if they were testing the waters for a revival.
