Zoe Ball and Jo Whiley are the perfect pairing on their Dig It podcast. A solid feature of TV and radio over the last 30 years, their companionable familiarity is a comforting presence when they deliver twice-weekly snippets of advice and laughter.
We've been moved by Zoe talking about facing Christmas without her mum, and nodded along with Jo's candid stories about HRT and menopause woes throughout previous episodes, and are big fans of the couple.
In their warm hug of a podcast perfect for midlife women, the pair recently spoke about dating after divorce. Taking questions from listeners, one divorcee asked for advice as getting back out there at her time of life was feeling "very alien."
Zoe agreed that dating can be "overwhelming and scary," after a long relationship but was very positive about dating apps - she also shared an unusual method some people in her life have used to increase their level of romantic success.
Named the "Cilla Black" method, it gets its name from the infamous dating show, Blind Date, which the legendary presenter helmed between 1985 and 2003 on ITV.
"Its a bit like Blind Date," Zoe confirms of the method, adding, "So you might have three people [dates] who you could be talking to. Then, if you're going to go on a date with one of them, put the other two to the back burner."
"So you're actually only seeing one person, and don't complicate it too much," she continues, and refers to the process as "a numbers game." She reveals that "quite a few friends" have told her the process definitely comes down to a "numbers game." Cilla would be proud.
Overall, Zoe's advice was to "just go for it." She suggests getting friends to help you put a profile together on some dating apps, even if you don't go any further than just "having a look at who's on there" for a while.
"Take the chance and meet some people," she says buoyantly. "Lots of people say it's quite fun actually," she adds. The presenter wants potential daters to do what they can to park their fear, and "just see it as a bit of fun".
Zoe herself was once married to DJ Norman Cook (AKA Fatboy Slim). They tied the knot in 1999 and separated in 2016. Speaking of her own previous dating experiences, Zoe says that being 5"10 impacted her approach.
"There was a time in my life where I just wanted to date men who were taller than me," she says. "They made me feel safe because they were really strong and they'd look after me," she adds.
However, with age and experience, her stance has now changed. "These days I think 'you love who you love,'" she says.
Returning to her listener's question and reiterating her previous advice about numbers, Zoe concludes, "Just go on a few dates and see how it goes, and prepare to play the numbers game.
"Yeah. Think of it as an adventure," she urges. Let the Cilla Black dating method commence.
