The Undateables, Channel 4 - TV review: There was enough airtime for us to see beyond awkward one-liners

The Undateables is back and still manages to be sensitive rather than sensational

The Undateables

When I manage to ignore The Undateables' silly name and the hand-holding narration – show not tell, please, Sally Phillips – and focus on the subjects' stories, then I've got a lot of love for this show, now on its fifth series.

We met James, who was clever and witty (if you like dad jokes – I do) but his Asperger's meant he found some social situations difficult, not least romantic relationships. He was given enough airtime for us to see beyond his awkward one-liners: “I don't think there's a word in the English language to describe how much I want a girlfriend,” he said, explaining how he feared his condition left him talking too much and getting stuck on certain topics.

These days we're used to watching excruciating initial encounters (take a bow, First Dates), so rather than the focusing on the cringe factor, we could delight in his progress on the three dates we saw.

Elsewhere, Tammy's facial features had been drastically altered after contracting meningococcal septicaemia and she hadn't been on a date since. “I don't like how I look, so to ask somebody else to like how I look is a big thing,” she said. Her match, Gary, pointed out that she could have taken exception to his bald head and glasses. There was a discernible spark between them. Tammy shed a tear and so did I. Happy new year indeed.