It’s the month that no one looks forward to – and there’s good reason why. January is the peak time for relationships to break up, for couples to file for divorce and for singles to feel overwhelmed by loneliness.
While it may seem like the worst start to a new year, the UK’s 15 million singles should thank actually thank January for being so cruel. Last month saw the highest rise in people looking for love, according to online Cupids match.com and PARSHIP.co.uk, with four out of five people (81%) actively looking to meet someone. Nearly half of them are searching for a committed relationship.
Love may be blind, but it also needs a bit of encouragement – even when times are hard. While the recession has proven that staying in is the order of the day, it’s much more fun when you’ve got someone to stay in with.
So, in anticipation of Valentine’s Day, here’s a guide to how you can find The One, whether it’s online, on the street, on a bus or on holiday.
GO ONLINE
It might not seem that romantic, but your computer is now your best bet at finding love. Using technology that helps you match up and complement your interests and hobbies with another person, online dating services are the modern best friend – searching for, vetting and essentially interviewing the other person in order to establish some sort of mutual interest.
Luckily, there are more singles online than ever before, with Match.com noting a 26% increase in the number of singles joining the site compared to last January. Fellow love site PARSHIP.co.uk also says that more and more singles are looking for love in 2009, with over two-thirds (67%) turning to paid-for dating services to help them arrange a first date.
London boasts the most singles looking for love (87%), followed by the North and Midlands (81%), then Wales (78%) and Scotland (76%), research for PARSHIP.co.uk found. Glasgow boasts the most single women and Reading the most single men – so you know where you should go.
For those in too much of a hurry to wade through endless emails and photos, you’ll be glad to know that speed dating has now also gone online. Put yourself face to face via webcam with five new people in five minutes www.woome.com – just be sure to tidy up whatever might be in the background shot.
GET ON THE PHONE
Ever had a snoop through your own phone? Research from Orange has found that almost a third (29%) of married people in the UK had their spouse’s number in their phone before they even went on a first date.
Whether it’s a work colleague, an old friend or a school mate you haven’t seen for ages, that special someone could well turn out to already be in your phonebook.
Statistically, you’re more likely to stumble across love this way if you’re in the south-east of the country – with a two in five chance (38%) you already have the number of your future wife or husband stored in your phone. At the very least, you can have a catch up – or perhaps rediscover, after hearing their tinny voice, why it is you hadn’t spoken to them in so long.
GET ON A BUS
‘Love on public transport?’ we hear your scoff – but yes, that fit bloke sat next to you hammering into his BlackBerry might just be The One.
Cherie and Tony Blair famously fell in love on a bus (the number 74, actually), when they got on “a double-decker and went upstairs”, she wrote in her memoirs.
“It was completely empty and by the time we got off we knew each other better than when we’d got on. And even better the next morning.”
In some cities across the UK, like Wolverhampton, you’re more likely to find your soulmate on the bus than on holiday or online, new research from First UK Bus has found.
Love on a bus is likely to last for at least a couple of months, sometimes even resulting in marriage, with Belfast, Newcastle and Brighton all popular places for public transport paramours.
Unfortunately, if you’re in Plymouth, you might want to consider going abroad – you’re three-times more likely to find Mr or Mrs Right on holiday (6%) than on the N354 or online.
GET PERSONAL
Take out a personal ad – or respond to one, it’s your call! Personal ads have been around since the 1700s, and while these days you’re more likely to have to decipher acronyms in your search for a guy with a GSOH, don’t let that deter you.
Classified sites such as www.singlesclub.co.uk and www.dateline.co.uk can help you find your match – just keep in mind that, without any photos to go by, it’s difficult to determine if that ‘sexy brunette’ is 19 or 90, or, ahem, that sexy.
GO ON HOLIDAY
The notion of traveling alone might leave you feeling sick, but signing up for a singles holiday could be just the thing you need.
Some singles holidays are geared specifically to romance www.solosholiday.co.uk, some let you hook up with others interested in seeing the world www.travelone.co.uk, and others let you do the sweet-talking while you jet ski or rock climb together spiceuk.com or www.activitiesabroad.com.
The group activities, organised dinners and social cocktails all make sure that you’re in constant contact with people who have similar interests – so if you’re a bit of a loner or like your own space, this might not be the thing for you.
GET NETWORKING
We don’t mean “Get out and meet people” here – we actually mean “Update your profile and see what wonders you can make of your love life”.
Yes, it’s the “profile” that’ll sell you, as Facebook www.facebook.com is the new matchmaker. Its 140 million active users make it the perfect place to snoop on that guy you always fancied in college or to see if the girl from IT is, actually, ‘In A Relationship’.
Research from Orange found that over one in 10 people (13%) have managed to get their crush’s number through social networking sites like Facebook (others include MySpace and Bebo). Just remember that anyone can join, it’s free and it’s easy to use – but update your data so that you know who can see your profile (you want your crush, not your boss, to know what you’ve been up to).
DO WHAT YOU LOVE
What’s that old adage – you can’t love someone else until you love yourself? If you’ve always wanted to take up salsa dancing, or learn to speak French, or finally finish that stained glass window, then get out and make it happen.
Once you’re doing the things you love, you might just find that someone else is doing what he or she loves too – and that you two share those same common interests. You never know, you might just be able to knit yourselves matching scarves – and wedding rings!
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