Nice Package
Contents |
Host
Lauren Laverne (voiceover)
Co-hosts
William Arruda (psychologist)
Broadcast
BBC1 North West, 30 June 2003
Synopsis
A dating show called "Nice Package"? That'll be one of those double entendres, then. And yes indeed, for this was billed as "the dating show with a difference"... but aren't they all? The gimmick this time was that the prospective dater didn't meet any of the prospective datees (so what's new?) but did get to meet their ex-girlfriends and family, and even stay overnight in their homes. This was all connected to American psychologist William Arruda and his concept of "personal branding" (oooh, painful) which apparently has nothing to do with hot iron (that's a relief) and more to do with what you can tell about a person from meeting their ex-girlfriends and family, and staying in their homes overnight. Though given all those opportunities to find out about prospective dates, you'd hardly need the help of a psychologist. Anyway, the date was a disaster, but then they usually are, and presumably Dr Arruda went back to the States in disgrace, since we never saw him, or the programme, again. Let that be a lesson to all producers: if you're going to give a show a title that's got two possible meanings, you'd better make sure it delivers on at least one of them.
Trivia
This was one of a series of late-night pilots in various genres tried out in the North West, and as far as we know none of them became series. There was another game show tryout, Whoops TV, the week after Nice Package.
