LOVE begins at 40

DAVINA MCCALL on her new dating show that celebrates midlife romance...

- VICTORIA WILSON.

MY MUM, YOUR DAD NEW MONDAY-FRIDAY, 9PM, ITV1 REALITY

Dating is not easy when you're young, but looking for love in your 40s and 508 can be even more D daunting. Davina McCall plans to change all that, though, with her new ITV1 relationship show My Mum, Your Dad.

She plays Cupid as eight single parents from across the UK, who've each been nominated by their grown-up children, live together at a stunning country-house retreat in the hope of finding the one'. And every weeknight over the next two weeks, viewers will be able to see if love blossoms.

But there's a twist - the parents are unaware that their kids will be watching their relationship journeys unfold from The Bunker, a 'surveillance room' where they'll get to help decide their mum or dad's dating fate.

Here, Davina, 55, tells us more about her matchmaking show with a difference...

The show has been dubbed a 'midlife Love Island'. Is that an accurate description?

That's my fault - I called it. Midlife Love Island in an email to ITV because I believed passionately in exploring midlife love on TV, but it's not the same show. There are so many 'second-time around-ers' in their 40s and 50s who have grown-up kids and who've maybe lost someone or been unsuccessful in relationships time and time again and who are now emotionally scarred. Life's complicated, and this show explores the baggage we bring to dating at that age.