Taken Out

''Taken Out'' is an Australian television dating game show that was originally broadcast on Network Ten between 1 September 2008 and 26 February 2009. The format was developed by FremantleMedia (now Fremantle) and was hosted by James Kerley.

International versions were developed using various titles, starting in 2008 in Denmark as ' (''Today's Man'') and in 2009 in the Netherlands as ''Take Me Out''. This title was also used for the British, Irish, Philippine and the American versions of the show. A rebooted Australian version, renamed to '' Take Me Out'', hosted by comedian Joel Creasey, aired on the Seven Network from 3 September until 27 November 2018.

Versions have also been made in Sweden, Indonesia, Japan, China, Spain, Finland, Thailand, Germany, Italy, France, Malaysia, Taiwan, Canada (Quebec), Vietnam and Lebanon.

Format

''Taken Out'' is primarily a studio-based show, with limited amounts of on-location filming, that involves a single person being introduced to thirty single people of the opposite gender which are revealed to them in the ''Taken Out'' arena. The show is split into two sections: The initial selection in the studio, and the two stage date. During the course of the game, the host presents information and videos about the single person and based upon this information, the thirty people periodically decide independently, if they should 'leave their light on' and stay in the game with the chance to date the single person or to 'turn their light out' and exclude themselves.

Initial selection

:''Note: The following describes the game process with one single man being presented to thirty single women. The opposite (one single woman presented to thirty single men) also occurs.''
Firstly, the women learnt a single piece of information about the single man which, along with his appearance, they used to decide whether they were interested or not. The women then judge and turn their lights off or keep them on, however if they turn their lights off, they can't change their minds later on. Next up, a video profile of the single man is shown, where they describe their best features and qualities to try to keep as many women in the game as possible. The women then judged again. After, a video by the single man's friend, family member, co worker or ex-partner is shown. The women then decide again. Finally, if there are four or more women left with their lights on, the single man walks around the arena and personally meets each remaining woman and either turns her light out or leaves hers on until there are only three women remaining. Then the single man asks a question to the three women, in which he then chooses one woman to dismiss. This occurs again for the remaining two women. At the end, the single man formally gets asked if they would like to date the remaining woman or to decline the opportunity. The first question is skipped if only two women are remaining and the single man still gets to ask a question if only one woman remains before arriving at the question stage. If at any stage of the game all thirty women turn their lights off, the game ends immediately and the single man leaves the show without a woman. During the whole process Kerley walks around the arena and chats with the women asking for their opinions of the single man and why they had kept their light on or turned it off.

Dating process

After the initial selection is complete, a three-stage dating process occurs. Firstly, the couple get to chat in private in a 'green room' at the studios in which they can get to know each other better in an uninfluenced environment. Next up, the couple meet for a date at a Melbourne restaurant, bar, massage parlour or other similar place. If either person is still interested in the other, there is an opportunity to attend a rendezvous at the Eureka Tower observation deck, where champagne and views of Melbourne at night await. This can often embarrassingly lead to only one person attending the rendezvous point. The latter two meetings are optional, however most attend the second stage. After all possible meetings, a final verdict is delivered. If either person wants the relationship to continue, they 'leave their light on' but if they wish for the relationship to end, they 'turn their light out'. This process is shown on the following episode, after the pairing was determined.

Broadcast

The show originally screened Monday to Friday in the 7pm timeslot before it was moved to an earlier 6pm timeslot after two weeks on air, due to competition from other shows. It was removed from schedules in its fourth week after screening 19 episodes, due to continuing mediocre ratings. Despite the axing, FremantleMedia continued to produce new episodes. In total, 65 episodes had been recorded. On 12 January 2009, ''Taken Out'' returned to air at around midnight each morning, seven days a week. The remaining 46 episodes aired until 26 February 2009.

The show has also aired on Australian subscription television channel Channel V.

International versions

References

External links

Official Website
* {{IMDb title, 1301963, Taken Out.

Network 10 original programming
2008 Australian television series debuts
2009 Australian television series endings
2000s Australian game shows
Australian dating and relationship reality television series
Television series by Fremantle (company)