My Mum, Your Dad: What to expect from Davina McCall's 'middle-aged Love Island'

One of the main criticisms aimed at dating show Love Island over the years has been its lack of diversity.

There have been calls for more realistic standards of beauty for women and men and better race representation.

Viewers have been asking for older contestants too - which is perhaps why ITV has decided it's time for a new format altogether.

My Mum, Your Dad, which is being dubbed the "middle-aged Love Island" will begin airing this autumn.

It will be hosted by Davina McCall, 55, who says she is "so excited" to be involved in the show.

A group of single parents who have been put forward by their children (who we are assured are grown-ups) will be given a chance to find love again.

ITV says they have been chosen from across the UK and will have unique life experiences.

Unlike Love Island, instead of a neon beanbag-filled villa in Mallorca or South Africa, they will instead reside in a country house retreat.

There will be a twist though - the children who volunteered their parents as contestants will be watching everything nearby and will even get a chance to act as matchmaker.

It means the children could be directly involved in finding their new stepparents as they choose who their mum or dad goes on a date with.

The format isn't original to ITV and was actually created by US screenwriter and television producer Greg Daniels and his daughter Haley.

Greg Daniels has worked on Saturday Night Live and The Simpsons and was the co-creator of hit sitcom Parks and Recreation.

Two versions of the show aired last year - one in the US and one in Australia.

It was warmly received in the US - largely due to the humour brought to the show by Greg Daniels' influence and plot twist of involving the contestants' children.

However, it was also critiqued for its casting - with Joel Keller of Decider describing everyone on the HBO Max show as "pretty good looking".

This was also the case with the Australian version of the show, so it will be interesting to see what ITV comes up with for the UK version.

Davina McCall is no stranger to reality TV having previously presented Big Brother for more than 10 years while it was on Channel 4. She also currently appears as panellist on ITV's The Masked Singer.

Speaking on Steven Bartlett's Diary of a CEO podcast in January 2023, McCall said she was "literally begging" the broadcaster to let her present a TV show that involves older people finding love.

Now that her wish has been granted, McCall said in a statement via ITV: "Thank goodness the secret is finally out! I've been bursting to tell! I'm so excited to host My Mum, Your Dad - this show will have you so invested in the people in it.

"Fascinating, vibrant individuals who have lived incredible lives already, with a million life lessons under their belts, as they search for their perfect life partner.

"But also with the juiciest twist of any show I've ever worked on."

ITV's reality TV offering is already pretty extensive - with one series of Love Island already broadcast this year and another one currently under way.

The latest summer series isn't performing as well with audiences as previous ones - which could also point to why ITV are looking for fresh formats.

Then there's Big Brother - which has had its ITV2 launch date pushed back but could be competing for audience attention with My Mum, Your Dad if it airs during the colder months.

But Paul Mortimer, who is in charge of reality TV at at the network, says the team is "really excited to be bringing this brand new format to ITV1's mainstream audience".

"My Mum, Your Dad is set to be a relationship show with a difference, as we follow the emotional and inspiring journeys of single parents looking to find love once more," he said.

"With Davina at the helm, this will be a grown-up iteration of a series in the dating genre that, thus far, has largely been the preserve of younger viewers."

The show will be produced for ITV by Lifted Entertainment, who also were responsible for the success of Love Island.

But the company's director, Richard Cowles, said that despite the success of the show, he wants to remind viewers that "dating isn't just about young people".

"We can't wait to launch this new dating format in the UK, this time with a very different cast of singles," he added.

"They may come from a different age bracket but they share the same, simple aim, to fall in love. And for single parents the stakes are even higher. We're delighted to have Davina at the helm teasing out these hugely relatable stories in a heart-warming and entertaining way."