YouTuber Mark Ferris on first gay kiss ahead of First Dates debut: ‘The most vulnerable I have ever been’ (EXCLUSIVE)
Known for his close friendship with Zoella and Alfie Deyes, the content creator is stepping onto the dating programme after never having a relationship
By Aaron Sugg
Tonight (15 August), YouTuber Mark Ferris steps away from his camera and tripod and onto our TV screens as he appears on Channel 4’s First Dates.
Known for his close friendship with Zoella and Alfie Deyes, he’s built an audience of half a million on both YouTube and Instagram.
At 34, Mark describes himself as a creative soul with a history of heartbreak but no official boyfriend… yet. His match is 42-year-old blonde bombshell Chris, a cruise brand manager. Speaking exclusively to Attitude on dating dos and don’ts, rumoured relationships and fans, here’s how he’s feeling ahead of tonight’s programme.
Swapping his camera and tripod for the TV screen
“Ew oh my god honestly, it has come so quick but also seems like the longest time sitting on this,” Mark says, recalling filming back in March at the official First Dates restaurant in Bath.
“That’s the thing – for me I don’t even go on normal dates let alone something to that extent. This is one of the biggest things I have ever done, the most vulnerable I have ever been. I have been online for over 10 years; I have spoken about everything when it comes to my personal life. To see me in a situation this is going to be so so different.”
As a YouTuber, Mark is used to having control as to what his fans see. “I think it is the control, thing because as a YouTuber and content creator 90 percent of the time we have control of what we put out and what we edit out, and to be honest I am leaving a lot more things in about my personality and quirks… it’s out of my hands now.
“For anyone new seeing me, they are going to see exactly who I am. There are no airs and graces with me.”
Dating history and drunken first dates
“Oh my goodness, how long have you got?” Mark says when asked why he’s single. He has never had a boyfriend, though he’s experienced heartbreak on the gay dating scene. On the show, he reveals he once dated a man for years before realising he was being “used,” as the man he was seeing was not out of the closet.
“When I’m out that’s where I want to meet someone, I am on the dating apps and I love that and sometimes it works sometimes it doesn’t.”
Providing us with a sneak peak into tonight’s episode, he says: “Having a boyfriend will be one of the best things for me when it happens… if it happens.”
He recalls a drunken dating mishap after one too many shandies. “Meeting a friend of a friend, we dated for a while, the first date I went on with him I just got too drunk. I was just so nervous and sometimes you can tell when you about to be friend-zoned.”
After getting slightly rowdy, though, he admits it happens to the best of us: “I think I scared him off.”
Dating dos and don’ts
Mark’s reveals his signature scent, which gets noticed on the show: “There’s a brand called NEST and it’s madagascan vanilla. I probably poured it all over my head, in my mouth everything…”
On his man, he likes a more dominant smell: “Paco Rabanne 1 Million… I think it’s amazing, very masculine. You can smell that before someone walks in.”
In the show he reveals he dates for personality. For Mark, it’s all about passion: “I’m attracted to people who are really passionate… seeing that sparkle in someone’s eye.”
Accents are a soft spot. “A Yorkshire accent… I just feel safe with them. Australian, Bristol, it’s just accents! A Welsh accent – I love it all. I’m broad!”
Biggest dating ick? “Manners” His First Dates partner though “had great manners.”
Would he date a fan?
“100 per cent. I met my best friend through being a follower of hers. It makes it easier because they know me… so when they are watching my vlogs and they still want to date me after, then I’m like ‘Yeah – bonus. Let’s sort it out; let’s make it happen’.”
On having over a decade in content creation, he says: “When people recognise you, you just never know what their intentions are… that goes with friendships and relationships.”
Even after 10 years in the game, Mark has not had any celebrities slide into his DMs, though US YouTuber Joey Graceffa sparked rumours. “We weren’t on a date – I was just showing him around London.”
And his ideal date? “The dream would be Channing Tatum. Ever since She’s the Man, I always thought ‘He’s alright isn’t he?'”
Finding himself and friendship with Zoella
Mark’s first gay experience happened at uni. “If you see me on the show I was shitting bricks 24/7, because I just don’t know how to react when someone says they’re into me. So we went back had a little kiss… I always knew, it was the first time I let it happen.”
Speaking about growing up the 90s and uni in the early 2000s, he says: “It was just a different time back then for me personally, where I just didn’t feel courageous and confident enough.”
Appearing in his vlogs mainly solo, he says he has gained significant confidence in his identity. Though, as Mark puts it: “It’s not your average thing to see someone you’ve watched for how many years on a date, so I think they’ll think I’m very nervous.”
Zoella, like his fans, has seen him grow over the years. Her message to him when she found out he was going to be on First Dates?: “You’re going on a date on national TV – do you know how far you’ve come?”
First Dates is on Channel 4 on Fridays at 10PM or you can catch up on the Channel 4 website.