Hosted by Zara McDermott, the eight-part series will follow five potential couples who have already matched through dating apps or social media but are yet to meet face to face.

The couples will be whisked away to a beach house in Greece for a week, away from their screens and the pressures of daily life to see if they can find love in the flesh.

Some of the couples have been talking for weeks, some years, but they have only interacted through apps, stories and DMs, so will their online persona match their real-world self?

Personal reasons and factors such as location have prevented these wannabe couples from meeting in person.

As the couples test their online chemistry with real world connections, some will decide to split and form new relationships and others will go from strength to strength. 

Each couple will take on a series of challenges to explore different sides of their relationship and learn more about each other. 

McDermott will help guide the couples and act as a confidante while exploring wider dating themes, and the benefits and pitfalls of online dating.

Christos and Niki 

Niki is a 22-year-old carer from Brighton and Christos is a 19-year-old restaurant manager from Worcester. 

The pair first connected online when Niki followed Christos on Instagram and he slid into her DMs.

Both are of Greek heritage with strong family values and speak on the phone at least three times a day. 

Niki sees herself as bubbly and always up for a laugh. As an influencer, she has over 100,000 followers and has even toured with Sean Kingston as a singer. 

Christos would describe himself as a confident, outgoing person with good morals and as a semi-professional footballer, he has over 50,000 Tik Tok followers. 

Christos usually goes for older girls, however, Niki normally goes for older guys, so will the age gap cause any problems?

Shelby and Millie 

Shelby, a 24-year-old NHS worker from Worcester, and Millie, a 23-year-old influencer from London, have been talking online for ten months and both feel like they have found the one. 

They have previously tried to meet, but a horse-riding accident left Millie undergoing five surgeries. While she was healing, she gained over 600,000 followers on TikTok.

Shelby runs a podcast with her twin sister called Gossip in the Closet, and loves to party and get involved in the LGBTQ+ community.

Millie is bisexual and finds it hard to know when girls are flirting with her. She loves being active, playing sports and being outside. 

Shelby falls hard in relationships; she moved in with her last girlfriend only two weeks after meeting her and is still trying to get over that breakup. 

Millie has some worries about Shelby’s true intentions and hopes she’s genuine and not just interested in growing her following.

Hannah and Brandon 

After meeting on a dating app six months ago, hot and steamy couple Hannah, a 24-year-old legal assistant from Huddersfield, and Brandon, a 23-year-old student from Sheffield, are nervous about meeting in person. 

Hannah loves to be the centre of attention and is always up for a chat, whereas Brandon is more reserved and shy. 

Brandon is currently studying English and loves reading and writing poetry and dreams of one day having his poetry published.

Hannah is tired of going on underwhelming dates and the disappointing messages from the boys in her DMs. She is a legal assistant and part-time ring girl, who loves her Chihuahua Cookie, with whom she shares matching outfits. 

Initially, Brandon only wanted something casual with Hannah, but she wanted something serious, which led to the pair not speaking for a few weeks until Brandon came to his senses and realised Hannah is the one he wants.

Chibz and Shazelle 

Shazelle is a 21-year-old receptionist and Chibz is a 23-year-old personal trainer, both from London. 

Chibz fell for Shazelle when they connected on Instagram two years ago, but it has not all been smooth sailing, with Shazelle standing him up twice.

When Shazelle is comfortable around people, she is loud and shows off her personality but can be shy around new people. 

She realises she can be moody and difficult at times and wants an understanding man who is attractive, but personality is more important to her. 

Chibz uses Instagram over dating apps to find dates and likes a funny, independent woman with a pretty face. 

At 14, Chibz developed vitiligo and has worked on insecurities regarding his looks to become a very social and confident person, which he believes women like. 

Jess and Kwame 

For five years, 24-year-old carer Jess from Hertfordshire and 28-year-old entrepreneur Kwame have been chatting to each other online but have never even FaceTimed because Kwame refused.

Jess is a single mum to her two-year-old son and has fears that Kwame is a catfish, she has been unlucky in love before but believes Kwame is special and could be the one. 

Kwame is a highflyer in the big city but doesn’t want Jess to know about the extent of his success in case she gets the wrong impression or is interested in him for the wrong reasons. 

His family and boxing are big parts of Kwame’s life, and he usually prefers meeting people through Instagram and Facebook so he can investigate any mutual friends.

Kwame says his resistance to FaceTiming is because he feels he looks better in real life so wouldn’t want to disappoint Jess before they have meet in person. 

 

Host Zara McDermott said: "It's a really fun show, but with a powerful meaning behind it as we explore what the landscape of dating looks like in today's society for young people. 

Love In The Flesh will air weekly on BBC Three and BBC iPlayer from Wednesday March 23rd, with two episodes per week.