Take Me Out, the beloved UK dating show that began in 2010 and concluded in 2019, has had its behind-the-scenes secrets revealed by former contestant Ciara De Carteret. The show, famously hosted by Paddy McGuinness, became a fixture on ITV as it featured a lineup of single women waiting for men to impress them.
Ciara, who appeared on the show at the tender age of 18 in 2017, took to TikTok to share her experience. She was particularly taken aback by the number of outfits she was required to bring and the process of trying them all on in front of the staff.
She recounted: “I can remember when they sent through how many outfits we needed to bring with us, I was shocked, like, I’m a broke student. I had no money, so couldn’t afford to go and buy all the outfits. My friend came around to help me pack.”
Host Paddy McGuinness
(Image: ITV / Thames / Fremantle)
And further detailed the unsettling wardrobe process: “One bit that really kind of freaked me out, remember all those outfits that we had to bring? We literally had to bring them all to the studio and go straight to a wardrobe. We had to try every single thing on in front of them.”
“It was honestly a row of women sitting in this small room filled with railings of clothes. We had to undress in front of them and just try everything on. And for a young girl that was only, like, 18, that was a lot, and they would literally be looking at you, going, ‘No, yes, no, doesn’t fit properly. No.'” “It was intense. I wasn’t a huge fan of that experience.”, reports the Daily Star.
Ciara also opened up about meeting host Paddy and the stern warning given to contestants about flirting with him, as he was married to Christine McGuinness at the time. She remembered: “I did love seeing behind the scenes of everything. We did a full run-through with the host. We got to meet him, though everyone was warned that you weren’t allowed to flirt with the host. I’d like to think that nobody would anyway.”
During her trip to the Isle of Fernando with her date, she mentioned that producers were quite strict, taking away their phones and restricting meals.
Take me Out was a big hit
(Image: ITV / Thames / Fremantle)
She described: “As soon as we landed, we got our phones taken off us, and we were chaperoned the whole time. We were told that we weren’t getting our phones back until we were ready to go home.”
“We were going to be here for three or four days, and for a young 18-year-old, not being able to get contact with her mum for this entire time, it was quite stressful, and it was pretty scary for my mum as well, because she just wanted to know that I was OK, and I literally couldn’t contact her.”
Ciara shared her challenging experience, noting: “It’s a bit of a blur, but I do remember being absolutely starving and asking for some food. They literally gave us a cereal bar at this point and we hadn’t eaten from early the day before.”
She added, “They knew this, and I don’t know if it’s because we were the first episode of this season and they just weren’t prepared. With the show, you go on a night out and get drunk, and then you see what happens. So we all got ready, and once we were ready, we went and did some interviews with the hosts, and then it was time to go out and have some drinks but I remember we hadn’t eaten so I was drunk.”
Reflecting on the production tricks, she continued, “So funny, because the bar that we went to was empty. So the crew themselves had to get in and make it look more packed than it was. And obviously, when you mix alcohol with an empty stomach, there’s drama. And there was drama between one of the couples, which honestly, looking back, that’s probably what they wanted.”
During her return to ITV studios for the reunion episode, Ciara recalled her discomfort, feeling uneasy about how the show unfolded.
She opened up about her experience: “On the reunion episode, I was actually really uncomfortable because I felt bad that it didn’t work out between us. And he’s actually a really lovely guy, but to save answering any awkward questions, we just kind of said that everything was okay. But you can definitely tell in that episode that I am really uncomfortable and I just don’t want to be there.”
She added, “Look, I have no hard feelings, but when I was really young, it was a really weird experience. I don’t regret it, and it brought me loads of opportunities.”