About 30 Dates Blog

The aim of this dating blog was always to make dating fun.

Dating shouldn’t feel like an interview for ‘The One’.  It should be an adventure.

What began as one girl’s summer challenge, has now developed into one of the most popular and respected London dating blogs.  Charly Lester’s advice has been used in countless national newspapers and magazines, and she now regularly appears on national TV and radio.

30 Dates is a dating blog where singles can find advice, date ideas, and reviews of dating apps, dating websites and singles events.  The dating blog also features regular dating advice from recognised dating and relationship experts.

The 30 Dates by 30 Challenge

The blog started out as a record of Charly’s original 30 blind dates.

After what she once thought of as the most perfect (and then most disappointing) date of her life ( The Henley Boy),  Charly  decided to throw caution to the wind, and make the most of her final three months as a 20-something singleton.

The challenge – Go on 30 blind dates before the age of 30.

The aim – To just enjoy dating again, and stop building it up to ‘mean’ so much.

The criteria – The men just had to be between the age of 25 and 35, and single.

And the dates HAD to be BLIND!

The 30 Dates Challenge ran between July 2nd (when Charly posted a spur of the moment suggestion on Facebook) to September 29th (when she finished it in style, climbing up to the Hollywood sign in LA).

The Challenge took Charly to London, Bristol, Madrid, New York and Los Angeles.

You can read about all 30 Dates, the Henley Boy, and his two ‘returns’ HERE.

The Dating Awards

The success of the blog, and the increasing profile of 30 Dates as a source of advice on dating websites, reviews and other dating services, led to Charly creating the UK Dating Awards in 2014.  The first annual Awards took place in November at the HAC in London.  The Awards recognised dating companies and experts in 26 different categories, including best online dating site, best magazine for dating advice, and best dating blog.

After two successful years of the UK Dating Awards, Charly took the Awards to the European mainland in June 2016 and then to the US in September of the same year.

Charly no longer writes 30 Dates, however she still speaks regularly about dating in the media. You can follow her on Twitter @30Dates  and email her at charly@thedatingawards.com.  

Please do not contact Charly about Guest Posts on this blog – Charly stopped writing it in 2015.