A Rivals and Inbetweeners star is said to be leading the race to front a reboot of Cilla Black’s famous Blind Date series.
Emily Atack, 36, is being eyed up by producers of the new Disney Plus series, which is due to start filming in the New Year.
The mother-of-one’s career first gained momentum after she starred as Charlotte in The Inbetweeners before going on to appear in Outside Bet and action movies like Lies We Tell and Get Lucky.
Most recently, Emily has starred in sexy 80s romp Rivals on Disney Plus as Sarah Stratton, the second wife and former mistress of Paul Stratton, who is conducting an affair as she vies for her own power.
The 36-year-old also has links to Cilla after her mother, Kate Robbins, penned the theme tune to Cilla’s other big TV hit, Surprise! Surprise!, and provided the voice for her puppet on the satire show Spitting Image.
A TV insider told the Sun: ‘Execs want someone youthful, fun and glamorous but also relatable to the youngsters who’ll form the bulk of the contestants.
‘Emily has always been candid about her own roller-coaster love life, before eventually finding the right man and settling down with a family.
‘She’d be an inspiration to many of the youngsters looking for love and happiness, but also a famous face that many people view as someone they could relate to.’
Earlier this year, it was revealed that the game show, which was hosted by Cilla, is set to get a new home on Disney Plus.
Meet the first ever married couple from Blind Date
Sue and Alex Tatham had no idea quite how much their lives would change when one day in 1988, during an appearance on Blind Date, the screen drew back and they would both be confronted by the person they would go on to spend over 30 years married to.
Well, Sue and Alex did just that; more than three decades on they’re still going strong since becoming the first-ever couple to tie the knot after meeting on Cilla Black’s dating show.
To read more, click below:
The original Blind Date saw one hopeful single introduced to three members of the opposite sex with the aim of securing a date with one of them by the end of the show.
Airing between 1985 and 2003 on ITV, it had a brief revival on Channel 5 for two years in 2017 when Paul O’Grady took on hosting duties.
Metro readers previously revealed who their dream presenters would be for the reboot, as Celebrity Traitors star Alan Carr and Bake Off presenter Alison Hammond’s names were thrown around.
Earlier this year, Emily announced her engagement to boyfriend Dr Alistair Garner with a romantic holiday snap.
Resting her hand on her partner’s chest, Emily showed off her diamond engagement ring to the camera.
This came after she praised the use of intimacy coordinators following the years of ‘sexual assault’ she experienced on work sets throughout her career.
Speaking to the Sun, she said: ‘I’ve seen people roll their eyes about them [intimacy coordinators] and say, “I don’t need one.”
What does Metro think about the Blind Date reboot?
Our columnist Adam Miller shared his thoughts…
Even in a crowded field of TV dating shows, I was initially elated to hear Blind Date was returning to screens 22 years after Cilla Black said her final ‘ta-ra’.
Paul O’Grady briefly revived the classic dating show for two series in 2017 on Channel 5, but it never managed to set the stars alight and remains a largely forgotten jewel in his showbiz crown.
Because it was Cilla’s version that captured the zeitgeist of dating shows in the 90s and early 00s.
Her enthusiasm and unbridled camp was totally mesmerising to me.
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‘There’s a defensiveness about it, because they feel like they’re being accused of something they haven’t even done yet.’
‘I’ve been sexually assaulted at work throughout my career, whether it’s on the actual set, or at a wrap party.
‘And since the #MeToo movement, it shows that people are listening and that there has to be a shift in behaviour on sets.’
The Blind Date reboot is said to be coming to Disney Plus.
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