Telling Tinder Tales - dating and romance stories from around the world

In this funny and feel-good episode of Telling Tinder Tales, hosts Chris O'Neill and Thomasin Lockwood welcome two fantastic guests: actress, comedian, and writer Helen Lederer, and marketing exec Dunstan Kesseler.

Helen kicks things off with a wonderfully awkward Lonely Hearts dating story from the pre-Tinder era—complete with a Guardian newspaper, an uncomfortably long hand-holding session, and a wife. She shares the kind of tale only she could: self-deprecating, sharp, and filled with charm.

Then, Dunstan brings the unexpected: a wild night out in LA involving tequila, Big Wangs (yes, the bar), a Drew Barrymore impression, and a romantic twist. It’s the kind of story screenwriters dream of—except it’s all true.

🎙️ Featuring hilarious anecdotes, thoughtful questions, and behind-the-scenes glimpses into dating then vs. now, this episode is perfect for fans of dating podcasts, romantic comedy lovers, and anyone who’s ever swiped right—or answered a Lonely Hearts ad.

Thank you to Helen Lederer @helenlederer and Dunstan Kesseler @dunstankesseler

Mentioned in this episode:

• Timeout Magazine, The Guardian, Big Wangs LA
• Helen Lederer’s memoir “Not That I’m Bitter”
• Fawlty Towers play (West End run through September!)
• Dunstan’s father’s book Unreliable Memories (maybe?)

🔗 Connect with us: 📸 Instagram: @TellingTinderTales 🎭 Catch us LIVE at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival ⭐ Love the show? Leave a 5-star review and help us grow!

#DatingPodcast #HelenLederer #EdinburghFringe2025 #TinderFails #RomanticComedy #FunnyPodcast #PodcastRecommendations #MeetCute #LoveStories #OnlineDating #ComediansOnDating #BigWangsLA

Telling Tinder Tales is back with another hilarious, heartfelt, and occasionally horrifying look at modern dating! In this episode, hosts Chris O’Neill and Thomasin Lockwood welcome three international guests—James from Australia, Elena from Italy, and Joseph from Nigeria—to share their most memorable and jaw dropping dating stories.

From a summer romance in Sheffield that began with a Facebook mishap to a bizarre one-night stand involving tea, pizza, and role play, to a long-distance connection gone very sideways thanks to unexpected Snapchat sexting —this episode dives deep into the wild world of online dating.

🗣️ Topics include:

• Long-distance love stories
• Hilariously awkward Tinder dates
• Role play gone wrong
• Dating across cultures
• Faith and relationships
• The blurred line between connection and fetishisation

Whether you’re a serial swiper, a dating app dropout, or just here for the drama, this episode delivers laughs, cringe, and maybe a little hope for love in the digital age.

James: Take Off and Landing

📌 Perfect for fans of dating podcasts, funny real-life stories, and conversations about relationships, Tinder fails, and dating culture.

👉 Subscribe, rate, and share if you’ve ever had a dating experience you thought only happened in movies (or nightmares).

In this laugh-out-loud and unexpectedly heartfelt episode of Telling Tinder Tales, your hosts Chris O'Neill and Thomasin Lockwood welcome three brilliant guests with three wildly different dating stories—from cringe-worthy encounters to serendipitous romance.

🎙️ First up is Bondy, a musician, who shares a cautionary tale about dating while still living with an ex and how a well-meaning profile update in Paris accidentally tanked a budding connection.

📚 Then, author Lauren joins us from California to recount how a viral Reddit post about emotional oversharing led to not only a book deal but also meeting her future husband—yes, from a DM on Reddit! It’s a real-life rom-com for the digital age.

🎭 Finally, Ben—actor, writer, and brave soul—recounts a jaw-dropping experience on a lesser-known kink dating app involving a café, a notepad, and a urological themed interrogation. You’ll laugh, you’ll wince, and you’ll never look at a café date the same way again.

Whether you’re dating, swiping, or just love juicy stories about modern romance, this episode is packed with honesty, humour, and a touch of horror. Tune in for cringe, chemistry, and a few cross-shaped surprises.

—

Follow, subscribe, and leave a review—5 stars might just get you a DM from Thomasin (or a marriage proposal). One star? Well, let’s just say we know a urologist…

Guests:

Bondy https://bondykaye.com/music/

Lauren https://www.waterstones.com/book/looking-for-something-serious/lauren-josephine/9798989116614

Ben @benmansbridgeactor / @littlenugget.pictures/

Follow us @TellingTinderTales on TikTok and Instagram

In this hilarious and heartwarming episode of Telling Tinder Tales, hosts Chris O'Neill and Thomasin Lockwood are joined by three unforgettable guests from around the world sharing their most outrageous and unexpected dating stories.

🎤 First up, viral comedy singer and filmmaker Harper the Fox dials in from Idaho to reveal how a toe-shoe-wearing date nearly cost her a job — but somehow led to marriage, kids, and a lifetime of creative collaboration.

✂️ Then we hear from Phil, a London-based hairdresser whose flirty plan to skip the queue at a nightclub spirals into a surreal, terrifying evening with a man obsessed with an Australian serial killer (yes, really).

💃 Finally, UK podcast producer and dancer Alicia tells a real-life rom-com tale of a three-time almost-missed connection that ends with love, fate, and a Tinder match that actually worked — set against the glamorous backdrop of Weatherspoons and student nights out.

This episode is packed with laughs, near-misses, toe-curling awkwardness, and a surprising dose of romance. Whether you’ve swiped left, right, or deleted your dating apps entirely, these stories will leave you entertained, horrified, and maybe even a little hopeful.

Harper the Fox @harperthefoxofficial and CopsVsWhores.com

Follow us: @tellingtindertales

Get in touch if you have a tale: tellingtindertales@gmail

Welcome to another hilariously heartwarming episode of Telling Tinder Tales, the podcast where your favourite hosts Chris O'Neill and Thomasin Lockwood invite real guests to share their wild, wonderful, and downright weird dating stories.

In this episode, we welcome Angie, Liam, and Emily, each calling in from across the UK and Europe to reveal their most memorable dating experiences—from romantic mishaps to accidental meet-cutes.

🔥 Highlights include:

• Liam's date in Edinburgh, complete with a protective German Shepherd, broken shelves, and parking issues.
• Angie's unexpected lockdown romance sparked by a Zoom quiz.
• Emily's jaw-dropping clown school adventure in France, where seduction took the form of white-boy rap battles and pirate improv.

Expect awkward confessions, witty banter, emotional vulnerability, and some serious lessons in love, compatibility, and crisis management. Whether you’re a dating app veteran or still clinging to romantic comedy dreams, this episode is full of laughs, cringe, and genuine connection.

🎭 Featuring real people, real stories, and real chaos from dating apps and the world beyond.

👉 Don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and review—because five stars might just save someone’s parking ticket. 📍Follow us on Instagram: @tellingtindertales 🎤 Catch our live shows in Derby, Edinburgh, Shrewsbury, Buxton, Colchester & more.

Guests:

Liam Wallace @drawn.andquartered

Emily Haldane @dfilthdrag theperformeremily.com/about-me/

In this episode of Telling Tinder Tales, hosts Chris O’Neill and Thomasin Lockwood welcome two brilliant guests, Aram from East London and Austin from Lincoln, for a journey through love, loss, and late-night absurdity in the world of dating.

💔 Aram shares a deeply personal and poignant story from the pre-Tinder era of Yahoo Messenger in Iran — a blind date that turns into a disappearing act, and the unexpected self-discovery that followed. From navigating oppressive cultural norms to exploring early stirrings of sexuality, her tale is as heartfelt as it is eye-opening.

🦌 Austin, meanwhile, brings the laughs with a chaotic night out in a goth nightclub while dressed as Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer. He introduces us to the "Oxfam Dance", a brutal yet hilarious phenomenon that people with disabilities face on nights out. His story of being hit on, ghosted, kissed, and stared at by a fiancé—all in one night—is nothing short of wild.

✨ Themes in this episode include:

• Online dating before Tinder
• Queer awakening and cultural identity
• Disability and dating experiences
• Nightlife chaos and emotional resilience
• Funny, awkward, and very real modern dating fails

Whether you're swiping, ghosting, dancing awkwardly in a mascot costume, or accidentally calling your high school crush—this episode is for you.

🎧 Listen now for an honest, hilarious, and occasionally heartbreaking glimpse into real people's dating lives. If you love modern love stories told with heart and humour, you won’t want to miss this one.

👉 Follow us on Instagram and TikTok: @tellingtindertales 📬 Got a tale to tell? Email: [email protected] 🌟 Like the show? Leave a 5-star review—and maybe even get a phone number.

In this hilarious and heartfelt episode of Telling Tinder Tales, hosts Chris O'Neill and Thomasin Lockwood welcome two unforgettable guests, Alex and Iga, as they share some truly wild and unexpected dating adventures from the world of modern dating.

Alex recounts a nerdy romance gone sideways involving red shoes, a romance with an escort, and a very literal cuddle from a bearded dragon—not to mention a stolen Batman doormat. Meanwhile, Iga relives a surreal annual hookup tradition sparked by a blurry beach party in Spain, complete with drunken salsa lessons, an Instagram mystery man, and some very public intimacy.

🎧 Whether you're into awkward first dates, funny Tinder stories, or tales of sex work, science, and salsa, this episode has it all.

This episode delivers a mix of laugh-out-loud moments, real human connection, and unexpected insights into modern romance.

📲 Follow us on Instagram and TikTok: @tellingtindertales ⭐ If you enjoy the show, please rate us 5 stars and share the laughs—every review helps us grow!

Thank you to our guests:

@alexwattcomedian

@igayvuelta

Welcome back to Telling Tinder Tales, the hilarious dating podcast where real people share their most unforgettable, cringe-worthy, and heartwarming dating stories—from dating nightmares to unexpected love stories.

In this episode, we hear three wildly different tales from our guests KC da Rookee, Sam, and Marysia. From a private detective with a weird infatuation and a lie detector , to someone disappearing mid-date, to a surreal date with a non-English-speaking Italian heartthrob, this episode is full of laughs, red flags, and a surprising amount of public transport drama.

💬 KC shares his rollercoaster journey from serial swiper to a Tinder success story.

💔 Sam opens up about getting stood up mid-date and how she bounced back with style.

💃 Marysia recounts a romantic misfire with a language barrier and a dramatic bus escape involving the police.

Expect dating app disasters, sibling banter, club pick-ups gone wrong, and lots of comedic insight into the world of modern love. Plus, hear what our hosts and guests think about dating etiquette, cars as first impressions, and the need for emergency date-exit hotlines.

Thank you to our guests!

KC da Rookee IG @icreatemyownreality

Marysia Trembecka aka The Singing Psychic

And Sam!

In this unforgettable episode of Telling Tinder Tales, your hosts Chris O'Neill and Thomasin Lockwood dive into the highs, lows, and absolute chaos of modern dating. With three wildly different guests—from a romantic theatre producer to a science-savvy singleton and a surfing Italian—this episode offers laughter, shock, and hope.

🎭 First, we hear from Guy, who shares a sweeping love story that began with a spark, a foot massage, and ended in a fairytale romance. Paris, passion, and 16th-century cottages collide in a tale that proves when you know, you know.

🌧️ Next, Elle, recounts the most cringeworthy date ever—complete with rain-soaked walks, warm gin from plastic cups, and wildly inappropriate conversations. It’s a horror show in Hampstead Heath that will have you laughing and cringing in equal measure.

🏄‍♂️ Finally, Nico tells his sweet, surf-side story of meeting a stranger on the waves of Tuscany and how a year later, their love story turned into something real. With goofy kisses, spontaneous reunions, and deep connections, Nico’s tale is a warm reminder that real romance still exists.

Whether you’re a hopeless romantic or a seasoned skeptic, this episode will have you laughing, nodding, and possibly texting your ex. Hit play, and join us for this rollercoaster of tale —from awkward beginnings to heartwarming endings.

🔗 Don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and review if you enjoy the show! New episodes drop weekly, featuring the funniest, weirdest, and most relatable dating stories out there.

The Shark is Broken - https://sharkmv.com/

Twipes - fully flushable, biodegradable wipes. https://www.twipes.co.uk/

In this hilarious and unpredictable episode of Telling Tinder Tales, hosts Chris O’Neill and Thomasin Lockwood are joined by three unforgettable guests—Mark, Alice, and Christian—for a rollercoaster of dating disasters, awkward first and second encounters, and unwanted heckles. Mark recounts the time he brought a Tinder date to his comedy gig. Alice shares her Austrian charm and explains why German is not the language for dirty talk. And Christian's tells of a second date is ruined by a seagull in Soho.

Packed with laughs, cringe-worthy moments, and revealing insights into the world of online dating, comedy gigs, and cultural misfires. This episode is a must-listen for fans of real-life dating stories, stand-up comedy, and everything in between.

🎧 Listen now and don't forget to rate, review, and subscribe!📲 Follow us on TikTok and Instagram: @TellingTinderTales📬 Have a tale to tell? Get in touch at Telling Tinder Tales.

Thank you to:

Mark Simmons - Quip of the Mark

Alice Frick - The Anti-Self Help Book - Laughing Labia

And Christian Mcmills!