I took a break from my dissertation to go on Take Me Out

I’ve always loved watching the Take Me Out, all the cheesy chat up lines and innuendos are right up my street. My friend convinced me to apply for the show. I didn’t expect anything to happen but always secretly hoped to be one of Paddy’s Flirty Thirty.

I was contacted after 8 months, and was rather surprised to spontaneously be asked to do a Skype audition. A week later my place, out of 10,000 applicants, was confirmed.

The next week I was off to meet Paddy and the other single ladies. I thought flirting on national television would be the perfect excuse to take a couple weeks break from the dissertation.

I had no idea what to expect. It didn’t even seem real. I was so excited. Who wouldn’t be ecstatic at the prospect of pushing buttons and the possibly of ending up on the mysterious island of love?

I met the girls in the hotel in the morning of my first show. It was quite daunting as all the girls had big personalities, and most of them had got to know each other already, but they were all lovely.

Naturally, I got to know some girls more than others and made some good friends. All of the girls stay in contact on Facebook and WhatsApp (it’s the most annoying WhatsApp group ever-literally 200 messages every half an hour). We had our hair and make up done professionally, so most of the day would consist of lounging around in our dressing gowns and being pampered.

It was the dream. There was quite a lot of waiting around, but what surprised me most was how non-staged the show was. We had complete authority over what to say and when to turn our lights off, although this meant you had to think quickly and generate those one-liners, which was more mentally demanding than you’d expect.

I kept my light on approximately once every show, but naturally as the series progresses you get more and more desperate…

Paddy was hilarious on camera and off. In fact, he’d often make a few more inappropriate jokes off camera. There are plenty of innuendos and funny moments, but I don’t want to spoil anything. Often you get really carried away with the cheesy lines and end up regretting your words as soon as they leave your mouth.

It was definitely one of the best experiences of my life – like spending all day getting ready for a party, but the party was going to be viewed by 5 million people and it was finally acceptable to try out chat up lines.

The best part was walking down the stairs. You get so hyped up when you can hear the audience and they go crazy when the girls come in. Although, the first couple of times were really scary-those stairs are steeper than they look. Everyone remembers that girl who fell. We all lived in the fear of falling.

I can’t yet reveal whether or not I got a date. But if I did, it was probably because it was getting towards the end of the series and I was really desperate. If I did get a date, The Isle of Fernandos was probably amazing.

And if I did get a date, the date itself would probably have been the most embarrassing, awkward and humiliating thing I have ever done. But this is all hypothetical, obviously.

The experience definitely highlighted to me how much of a bubble we live in in Exeter. It was amazing to be surrounded by such a diverse group of girls and meet so many different people.

It was also a great insight into how TV shows work. I’m so so glad I did it, it was one of the best experiences of my life, but I wouldn’t do it again. It was great to be a part of, but there wouldn’t be any point doing it a second time. I highly recommend taking part. It’s so much fun – and you might even get a free holiday.