Television series
My Mum, Your Dad
- Romance
- Light-hearted
A dating show with a twist: single parents think they're on a romantic retreat, unaware their adult children are orchestrating everything from backstage. It's warm-hearted and genuinely funny, built on the collision between parental dignity and grown-kid meddling. For anyone who loves watching people find connection, or who enjoys the particular comedy of family chaos.
Should you watch it?
Watch it if you enjoy warm, unhurried reality TV where the fun is in watching ordinary people fumble through dating, and you don't mind a format that leans sweet rather than sharp.
Skip it if you find matchmaking shows thin without a sharp edge, or you want romance that feels earned rather than staged; this one stays gentle throughout.
What it asks of you: Sixteen episodes over two seasons, with a light touch throughout; it is easy company rather than demanding, so you can dip in between other things.
Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.
If you liked this
Love Is Blind2020
The same engine of romantic optimism and awkward vulnerability, but here the pressure comes from marrying strangers rather than being set up by your kids. Equally invested in whether real connection can bloom.
But The US versions run very long and can feel repetitive; later seasons lose some of the genuine stakes that made the first one sing.
Dating Around2019
Short, intimate, structured around real first dates rather than manufactured drama. Each episode follows one person meeting five different dates—no narration, no commentary, just the awkwardness and occasional magic.
But It's quieter and slower than you might expect. If you want matchmaking chaos, this is observational rather than theatrical.
The Ultimatum: Marry or Move On2022
Couples test their relationships by dating other people. It's messier and more ethically complicated than most dating shows, which makes it oddly compelling—real stakes, real consequences.
But Some episodes are genuinely uncomfortable to watch. The premise itself can feel mean-spirited, and not every storyline lands as satisfying.
Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from My Mum, Your Dad
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
Made in Chelsea2011
Both hinge on the comedy of watching people negotiate romance while someone else pulls the strings—here it's producers and the show's own mythology; on My Mum it's the kids. Same tension between authentic feeling and manufactured circumstance.
Reality TV about posh Londoners falling in and out of love over a decade. It's trash and it's knowing, with genuinely complicated relationships threaded through the champagne and drama. Weirdly addictive.
But It's snobbish by design and deliberately frivolous. If you find that aesthetic exhausting, no amount of actual human feeling underneath will make it worth your time.
More like this (8)
Married at First Sight2014
Real strangers get legally married by experts. The awkwardness of getting to know your new spouse in real time is sometimes painful, sometimes genuinely moving. High commitment means high stakes.
But The show runs very long and gets repetitive. The 'expert' interventions sometimes feel performative rather than helpful.
The Bachelor2003
The grandparent of modern dating shows. If you've never watched, the earnestness and the sheer theatrical chaos are worth an episode or two just to see where the whole genre came from.
But It's formulaic, sometimes cringe, and the gender dynamics can feel dated. A little goes a long way.
Love on the Spectrum2019
Autistic adults navigating dating and relationships with genuine humour and tenderness. It treats its subjects as fully dimensional people, not inspiration porn. Genuinely moving without being patronising.
But Some episodes handle rejection heavily—it's not always light viewing, and that can catch you off guard in a dating show.
Gogglebox2013
Families and friends watch TV together and react. The chemistry between people—how they tease each other, support each other, find things funny—is the whole point. Weirdly cosy.
But You're essentially watching people watch other shows. If you find that concept tedious, no amount of charm will fix it.
The Great British Bake Off2010
Not a dating show at all, but it has that same warm competence: ordinary people in an artificial situation, genuine stakes, kindness as a default. Soothing and occasionally thrilling in equal measure.
But If you don't care about baking, the technical challenges won't grip you. Later seasons trade some of the original show's warmth for spectacle.
First Dates2013
Awkward strangers on blind dates, structured but unscripted. The chemistry—or lack of it—is real, and there's something honest about watching people genuinely trying to connect.
But Because it's real and unscripted, not every date is interesting. Some episodes drag, and the resolution often feels anticlimactic.
Schitt's Creek2015
Both are fundamentally about parents and adult children learning to see each other clearly. Schitt's Creek does it through crisis; My Mum does it through romance—different doors, same room.
A wealthy family loses everything and moves to a small town. It's a sitcom about found family and second chances, with genuine heart underneath the absurdity. By the end you'll be weeping.
But The first season is uneven and the broad comedy takes time to earn the emotional payoff. Requires patience before it clicks.
Fleabag2016
The final season centres on the father's new relationship and sexuality coming alive—a mirror reversal of My Mum's central idea. Here the adult child watches her parent find love and has to let go. Both understand that a parent's romantic life can be deeply threatening to their children, and both find comedy and tenderness in that.
A chaotic woman in her thirties navigates family, sex, and self-sabotage. It's dirty and hilarious and desperately lonely, with a parent discovering new life just beneath the surface. The writing is extraordinary.
But It's anarchic and sometimes bleak. If you need comfort viewing, this will unsettle you even as it makes you laugh.
People
Cast
Kate LangbroekHost