If you happen to be one of the millions of people from around the globe who enjoy reality TV programs, it’s safe to say most of the people that you see onscreen fall into the same category.
Attractive men and women in their 20s and early 30s with Hollywood smiles and chiselled physiques constantly bombard the silver screen, clamouring for the affection of one another in a desperate quest for love and instant fame.
But a recent announcement on the American ABC network’s social media has tounges wagging across the globe as the casting call for an upcoming season of ‘The Bachelor’ has indicated the creation of spinoff series called ‘Golden Years’ that will showcase single seniors looking for new love.
Details on the show’s website reveal that the producers of The Bachelor are looking for active and outgoing men over the age of 65, and it appears that all of these distinguished gentlemen will be vying for the heart of a single senior lady.
Although this proposed new series is still in the casting phase, the idea of seniors taking centre stage on prime time television is refreshing to say the least.
Older people have been virtually non existent on television for the last two and a half decades, especially when compared to the ‘golden age’ of TV sitcoms that began in the 1980’s and fizzled out in the mid to late 90’s.
Back then, The Golden Girls, Murder She Wrote, Matlock, Empty Nest, Columbo, and Keeping Up Appearances, were merely a portion of the television shows that endeared seniors to a mainstream audience.
And seeing older faces portraying leading roles and living meaningful lives on television definitely had an impact on the public perception of ageing and older people.
Today, beauty is a term that is seemingly reserved for the youth who showcase botox filled lips and rippling bodies to hordes of Instagram followers, but 30 years ago, things were quite different.
In 1989, a then 60-year-old Sean Connery was voted the sexiest man alive, and it was common place to see older people on TV pursuing romance and openly discussing their sexual desires.
But back then, TV was the only game in town.
Nowadays, the internet has given people the ability to seek out their own video content, which means that masses are rarely exposed to things outside of their interest and age demographic.
Older people have been very much out of sight and out of mind for many young people who were born in the last 25 years and there is no doubt that this would help to shape their opinion on the value of older people.
Hopefully, this new dating show marks a turning point for mainstream television, providing the youth with a conduit into the lives and value of older people outside of their immediate circle.
Because even though youth comes with it’s own set of challenges, wanting to feel loved and valued has no limit’s in real life, so it shouldn’t be limited on-screen, either.
Image: Deagreez, iStock. Model is posed. Stock image.
I find the expectations of older people can be a tad skewed. Older men looking for young women. Complaining that women in their age group are ‘old’. I think open conversations around sexuality, consent and friendship are very important.