Sighted date

The widely-used conventions popularised by Rusbridger (1997) have been adopted in this article.

Cliff on Gillian

Before the date, what were you hoping for?
Overwhelming intellectual and sexual attraction. We leave the drinks unfinished and I try to maintain a straight face at reception as I ask whether they have a room available, now.

First impressions?
She seemed completely relaxed about the situation. A cool hello as she walked in and went round to the other side of the table. I stood up and leant slightly towards her; she sat down without a handshake or a kiss. Good clothes, layers of grey wool. Attractive hair, in an undyed browny-ginger mess. Posh, with a accent derived from class rather than geography.

What did you talk about?
The problems of looking after stroppy adolescent daughters; the prickliness of the teacher on the same acting class we did a couple of years apart; how depressingly unintegrated Blackburn is; her dating disaster with the man who stank and who provoked a faked rescue mobile phone call, and the story someone I met told me about a man who disapeared for a long time, then came back apologising but he "just had to go for a rub."

Any awkward moments?
None that I was aware of.

Good table manners?
It's difficult to go wrong with a blackcurrant and soda and a sparkling water.

Best thing about her?
She's a bullshit-free zone. I didn't feel anything was hidden and she had no trace of that widespread female trait of talking in code.

Would you introduce her to your friends?
No-one I go out with would ever be a secret, but I can't imagine she'd get on with most of them. She'd find them too vulgar, drunken, or reckless.

Could she meet the parents?
It's none of their business.

Did you go on somewhere?
No. She had an acting class and it was coming to a natural conclusion.

And... did you kiss?
No. The lack of anything physical seemed to be tacitly understood early on. We stood a yard apart on the hotel steps and said goodbye.

If you could change one thing about the afternoon, what would it be?
I wish we could have got drunk. You don't know someone until you've done that.

Marks out of 10?
It's not a situation to be assessed quantitively, but it was a pleasant afternoon, and that's not what I'm after.

Would you meet again?
We might run into each other at the theatre.