{"id":300826,"date":"2025-11-22T05:43:05","date_gmt":"2025-11-22T05:43:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/300826\/"},"modified":"2025-11-22T05:43:05","modified_gmt":"2025-11-22T05:43:05","slug":"chinas-hit-dating-show-if-you-are-the-one-recruits-talent-in-australia-and-faces-new-challenges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/300826\/","title":{"rendered":"China’s hit dating show If You Are the One recruits talent in Australia and faces new challenges"},"content":{"rendered":"

When Dong Yan stepped onto the set of China’s hit dating show If You Are the One in 2012, he declared \u2014 to a national audience \u2014 that he had come for one person only.\u00a0<\/p>\n

That person was Wu Zhengzhen, known to viewers as “the girl who cries the most”.<\/p>\n

From the moment Yan first saw Zhengzhen on screen months earlier, he had promised himself he would one day marry her.<\/p>\n

He went on to successfully audition for the show, but the couple’s first encounter on live television was not love at first sight for Zhengzhen.<\/p>\n

\"Two<\/p>\n

Dong Yan (far right) and Wu Zhengzhen with their two sons. (Supplied)<\/p>\n

Zhengzhen felt no spark when she met Yan. She was six years older, and her heart at the time was with another contestant.<\/p>\n

But she said she would walk off stage with Yan, “not because I love you”, she told him on the show, “but because I don’t want you to leave alone”.<\/p>\n

Yan replied: “I don’t care who you walk off this stage with. What I want is that one day, you will marry me.”<\/p>\n

Yan continued to pursue Zhengzhen after the season ended.<\/p>\n

One snowy winter’s day in Beijing, he waited outside in the cold for Zhengzhen to finish a business event. The gesture moved Zhengzhen, and the pair began dating and ultimately fell in love.<\/p>\n

“We got married on February 14, 2014 \u2014 Valentine’s Day,” Zhengzhen told the ABC.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Wu Zhengzhen says people thought they were watching a “joke” when she took part in the dating show. (ABC News: Kai Feng)<\/p>\n

The couple now live in Melbourne and have two children.<\/p>\n

Their marriage is just one of many unions forged through encounters on If You Are the One, the famous dating television show that broadcasts in China and internationally.<\/p>\n

Now in its 16th year, the show has faced numerous challenges like the decline of traditional television audiences and the rise of other dating platforms, including live-streamed blind dates in China<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show also promotes marriage, a social priority in line with Beijing’s policies but increasingly at odds with a younger generation with different desires and life goals.<\/p>\n

Despite the challenges, If You Are The One remains popular and relevant for many reasons.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The show’s host, Meng Fei, says fans are loyal. (Supplied)<\/p>\n

The show has mostly used a format where one bachelor is introduced to 24 bachelorettes on live television.<\/p>\n

Women decide whether to keep their lights on or turn them off as the show progresses, before the bachelor selects a date from those still interested.<\/p>\n

The show has aired in Australia on SBS with English subtitles for more than a decade, and this month the crew came to Australia to search for contestants for a new season expected to air in China and abroad in January.<\/p>\n

The recent visit to recruit contestants is the fourth time casting has been done in Australia, which is more than any other country.<\/p>\n

The show also came here to find contestants in 2011, then again in 2015 and 2019.<\/p>\n

Host Meng Fei said the program, which was recorded in China, had a unique connection with Australia, partially because of the strong fan base here.<\/p>\n

Women queue for auditions<\/p>\n

More than 300 people have registered for auditions in Melbourne and Sydney.<\/p>\n

Producers plan to select about 30 women and up to 10 men, who will be flown to Nanjing next month for filming.<\/p>\n

Applicants include Chinese Australians, international students, and Australians who speak Chinese.<\/p>\n

Many of the people auditioning in Australia told ABC Chinese they first watched the program with their parents when they were children.<\/p>\n

Among them is Carol, a 23-year-old University of Melbourne student, who is part of a generation called “post 2000” in China, or gen Z.<\/p>\n

She didn’t realise the show was still on air until she saw an advertisement for the Australian auditions.<\/p>\n

Carol said she signed up to take part mainly to expand her network.<\/p>\n

“I’m not necessarily looking for a romantic partner. The show helps me meet more people,” she said.<\/p>\n

However, other applicants like Sebrina, born in 1990, are hoping to get on the show to find a partner.<\/p>\n

\"Sebrina<\/p>\n

Sebrina hopes to find her perfect match if she is selected for the show. (ABC News: Kai Feng)<\/p>\n

“As I get older, I yearn for a happy marriage,” Sebrina said.<\/p>\n

“I want someone with a stable career \u2026 I’d like to have two children. I love babies.”<\/p>\n

Auditions organiser Kitty Lv said people applying to be on the show generally appeared to be born after 2000 and were mostly women.<\/p>\n

‘Even re-runs rate well’\"Kitty<\/p>\n

Kitty Lv says the first round of auditions for the 2026 season started in June. (ABC News: Kai Feng)<\/p>\n

While official data is patchy, at the height of its popularity between 2010 and 2015, If You Are the One was often the top-rated variety TV show in China.<\/p>\n

Ratings have fallen and it is now fifth for the first half of 2025, with a cumulative domestic audience of 160 million people, according to data from a ratings agency of China’s National Radio and Television Administration.<\/p>\n

As traditional television audiences have declined, the program has expanded to online and social media platforms both domestically and internationally.<\/p>\n

Meng Fei, who has presented the show since its debut in 2010, acknowledged the changing media landscape but insisted audiences remained strong.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

A screenshot from the show with a contestant and host Meng Fei. (Supplied)<\/p>\n

“There will be some diversion of audiences because of the internet,” he said.<\/p>\n

“But viewer loyalty is very high. People watch it for years. Even re-runs rate well.”<\/p>\n

The broader environment around dating and marriage in China is shifting rapidly, too.<\/p>\n

Fewer people are getting married in China, despite a small rebound in the statistics from January to the end of September this year.<\/p>\n

In 2024, 6.1 million marriages were registered in China, down 20 per cent from 2023, data from China’s Ministry of Civil Affairs showed.<\/p>\n

\"China's<\/p>\n

Data from China’s statistics bureau show marriage rates are declining. (ABC News: Kai Feng)<\/p>\n

The high cost of childcare and education has been blamed, along with economic uncertainty.<\/p>\n

But Meng Fei remained upbeat and said the program still had a lot to offer young people.<\/p>\n

“Young people still need emotional connection. That absolute demand is enough to sustain our program,” he said.<\/p>\n

Producer Dong Ming agreed.<\/p>\n

“Most young people still hope to meet their true love, start a family and even have children,” he said.<\/p>\n

“We want to help them improve their dating skills and learn how to build a healthy relationship.”<\/p>\n

Show reflects social change in China\u00a0\"China's<\/p>\n

China’s marriage rate has been declining since 2013. (Reuters: Tingshu Wang)<\/p>\n

While the show promotes marriage, an ideal in line with Beijing’s policies, the program’s content has not always pleased authorities.<\/p>\n

In 2010, shortly after it started broadcasting for the first time, it was briefly suspended during a crackdown on “vulgar and ugly trends” in dating programs.<\/p>\n

Regulators banned personal attacks, sexual innuendo, and the promotion of “unhealthy values” such as gold-digging.<\/p>\n

One contestant made a comment that went viral, noting she would “rather cry in a BMW than laugh on the back of a bicycle”.<\/p>\n

Some contestants have also been accused of appearing on the show for commercial motives.<\/p>\n

Women sometimes challenged male contestants in sharp and unfiltered exchanges, which contributed to the show’s lively appeal.<\/p>\n

This is in contrast to the norm, as China is mostly a conservative society with traditional gender norms.<\/p>\n

“All of this doesn’t match the socialist spirit promoted by the [Chinese] government, and it disrupts the harmony the government aims to promote,” explained Pan Wang, an associate professor of Chinese and Asian studies at the University of New South Wales.<\/p>\n

\"Dr<\/p>\n

Pan Wang says the show has enjoyed commercial success despite being criticised. (ABC News)<\/p>\n

Dr Wang, who has written two books on China’s dating culture, said the tension between regulators and the show’s content reflected social change.<\/p>\n

“On one hand, the government wants to boost marriage because of falling birth and marriage rates. On the other hand, young people want a lifestyle that fulfils their emotional needs. These don’t align.”<\/p>\n

Dr Wang said the “mismatch between the grassroots and the state” was what made the show compelling for viewers.<\/p>\n

She added that marriage was also less attractive to younger generations because it came with rising costs.<\/p>\n

Single men were expected to have an apartment, a car and a large betrothal gift payment, also known as a “bride price”.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Today<\/p>\n

The cost of marriage is a factor detering young people from getting hitched, Dr Wang says. (Reuters: Stringer\/File)<\/p>\n

This, partnered with a lack of employment and economic security for young people in China, often made marriage undesirable, she explained.<\/p>\n

However, Dr Wang said the show remained valuable and relevant.<\/p>\n

“Viewers get entertainment,” she said.<\/p>\n

“But they also gain insights into gender relations, social change and the broader forces shaping China today.”<\/p>\n

Back in Melbourne, Zhengzhen said the couple would encourage their sons to take part if the show was still running when they were older.<\/p>\n

The boys have watched the original 2012 broadcast when their parents first met.<\/p>\n

“They were shocked, asking, ‘Mum, is that really you?’ They think it’s amazing that their parents met this way,” Zhengzhen said.<\/p>\n

As they watched the show back, Zhengzhen recalled how everyone, including her mum, thought “they were about to witness a joke”.<\/p>\n

“But I think life is sometimes like a gift box \u2014 if you never open it, you’ll never know what wonderful surprises might be inside.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When Dong Yan stepped onto the set of China’s hit dating show If You Are the One in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":300827,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[64,172001,171999,63,95686,134,12346,171998,2581,1685,172000,33470,134585,434],"class_list":{"0":"post-300826","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-entertainment","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-audiences","10":"tag-auditions","11":"tag-australia","12":"tag-dating-show","13":"tag-entertainment","14":"tag-generation-z","15":"tag-if-you-are-the-one","16":"tag-marriage","17":"tag-media","18":"tag-post-2000","19":"tag-ratings","20":"tag-social-change","21":"tag-television"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/300826","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=300826"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/300826\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/300827"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=300826"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=300826"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=300826"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}