This week I was invited to an awesome event hosted by Maclynn8 – the event arm of Maclynn (formerly Vida). We were treated to champagne and some delicious canapés, but, more than that, an hour of brilliant stories and hilarious anecdotes from the Sunday Times dating duo Dolly Alderton and Cosmo Landesman in the comfort of the awesome Urban Coterie restaurant at the top of the M Hotel in Hoxton.
Having been to numerous singles events before, I can genuinely say I was pleasantly surprised by the evening. All too often they feel painfully contrived, either far too ‘bar’ focused or far too ‘activity’ focused, having a Q&A with well-known people from the dating industry gave the evening a theme but not so much so that people weren’t able to chat, get involved and network – and with Dolly and Cosmo covering topics such as how late is too late on a date, who pays, no-go topics of conversation and the big ‘who texts first’ debate, there was certainly plenty to talk about!
The bubbly was free-flowing, the canapés fabulous, venue top-notch and, refreshingly, the caliber of people, very high. Undeniably the demographic was slightly older than many dating events I have been to but, perhaps as a consequence of that (or am I being ageist!?) it felt the people weren’t there *just* to meet someone but to genuinely enjoy a networking event with other like-minded people, the fact they were single was a bonus, but didn’t feel like the sole purpose of the evening.
It’s easy to see why Maclynn8 consider themselves to be more a of ‘social club’ – gathering together the kinds of people you’ve always wanted to meet (but didn’t know where they were hiding) and providing people with opportunities to network, make friends and have fun. They partner with prestigious art galleries, restaurants, concierge companies and other elite networking clubs to bring you the most diverse and enjoyable experiences, and I got a really sense that they deliver what they promise, this certainly stood out as head and shoulders above a lot of other dating events I’d attended in the capital.
Being a person who is often quite sceptical about singles events – most notably the caliber of men who attend them! I can genuinely say this was one of the most well organised, relaxed and sociable ones I’d been to – I’d recommend it to anyone in their thirties + as an event, which, even if you don’t walk away with a number, you’ll be guaranteed to have a good evening … and, on this occasion, plenty of insight into the dating scene, from two of the best dating diarists there are!
Written by Katy on her award-winning blog, All Sweetness and Life.
Katy’s work is open and honest, and looks at the dating world from a ‘front-line perspective.’ There is no subject too big, small or taboo that Katy can’t find a humorous and insightful angle on and, despite the title, there is nothing in her blog which is sugar-coated! Besides her blog, Katy writes for Metro.co.uk, The Huffington Post, TimeOut.com & Match.com, London X, along with a number of other well-respected sites including WeLove Dates, Kelly Seal, The Urban Dater & Toyboy Warehouse.
She also speaks regularly on BBC radio on the subject, is proud to be brand ambassador for LELO and Sexpo UK and a judge at the UK Dating Awards.
Katy is proud to count Highly Commended at the Cosmo Blog Awards, Winner in both Best Blogger and Best Blog category at the UK Dating Awards and winner at the UK Blog Awards 2016 amongst her recent achievements.
