Pretty Single: Ballymena women says ‘Confidence matters more than make up’

The 23-year-old Masters graduate, from Buckna, outside Ballymena, is one of six image-driven singletons who will ditch their make-up to try and find a love connection that’s more than skin deep.

Each week, six girls from Northern Ireland and Scotland – Patricia, Mando, Ali, Sean, Michaela and Pamela – embrace a unique dating experience going on five dates with five different guys, completely make-up free.

The BBC1 programme, narrated by Derry Girls star Saoirse-Monica Jackson, sees Michaela go on five dates with different suitors while the other Pretty Single girls provide supportive and humorous commentary from their sofa.

Each episode strips away one woman’s ‘mask’ of perfect make-up, hair and glamorous clothes in a dramatic ‘make-under’ before sending her on a series of dates with specially selected suitors, to see if she’s more likely to find love by embracing her natural beauty.

Pretty Single strips away the mask of make-up to help the girls find their naturally beautiful happily-ever-after.

Michaela will appear in the fifth episode of the programme as she bravely strips away the glossy image she portrays on social media.

Each of her five suitors were specially matched to her but she can only take one to dinner and hopefully make a lasting love connection.

Claiming never to have been in a proper relationship, the thought of dating with no make-up absolutely terrified her.

“Everyone who knows me knows that I’ve never really liked dating so I didn’t go into the experience thinking I’m gonna find a guy,” she says candidly.

“I was in shock at just being chosen for the show and was absolutely petrified about being filmed - and obviously without make up.

“But I did think that maybe the show would help me in the long term about how I thought about myself, relationships and dating.

“I was really surprised when I got a random message on my Instagram account about the show at the end of September asking me if I was interested and they wanted pictures and videos.

“So I sent them some stuff and didn’t hear from them for a while so I thought nothing more of it.

“I was then called for an audition in the Europa Hotel where we had to talk about ourselves, our ideal type of guys, relationship history etc, and then take off our make up.

“When they told me that I had been chosen I was just completely shocked - and terrified.”

The daughter of Michael and Bridget Best and sister of Owen, Michaela went to St Louis Grammar School in Ballymena before studying Law at Queen’s in Belfast.

“Surprisingly it was my dad who told me to go for it, that I might not get a chance to do something like this again,” reveals Michaela. “Mum was a bit more cautious, I think she thought I was going on Love Island or something!”

Michaela - whose dream date would be a cross between Harry Styles and Orlando Bloom - said it was nerve-wracking enough to meet five strangers for a date but without make up any deeper insecurities were laid bare.

Despite her bubbly and friendly personality she was instantly taken out of her comfort zone.

“We live in a world of Instagram and social media where everyone looks perfect so therefore you want to look your best and image is all important.

“So you want your make up to be perfect, your pictures to be perfect but how much is that real? How much do men really notice if your eyes are too dark or if you have too much make up on? I’m not sure that they do.

“Each of us had five dates and in the end we had to choose between two guys, with one to go on a more formal dinner date with.

“The guys were mostly from Northern Ireland and Scotland and they were literally thrown into the deep end, but they were all so lovely.”

In a world obsessed with image, everybody wants to put their best face forward. So were the potential suitors aghast at the stripped down, make-up free version of Michaela?

“To be honest the guys I don’t think noticed whether I had make up on or not, they were just there to find out more about you and have a laugh. Their comments were really lovely though and that made me think how much being made up really counts.

“Of course no matter how much you’re told how lovely you are, how much does that really sink in? So it makes you think do you need all this make up to feel pretty and worthy?

“I think it really comes down to having that inner confidence in yourself, that’s what really important in the end, despite what people tell you.

“So the show really came down to whether I would choose to go on the final date with full glam make up or go more natural. The guys saw me with my hair swept back with no make up on so would it really make any difference anyway?

“In fact now when I look back at some old photographs of myself with make up on I don’t like the way I looked at all.”

First up on tonight’s show is hairdresser, single-mum and self-confessed romantic, Patricia from Londonderry, who admits hiding her true self behind make-up to boost her confidence.

After several failed relationships, she is ready to meet ‘the one’, but will dating bare-faced move her any closer to her happy ever after?

She says: “It’s putting on a mask in the morning, it’s covering the flaws that you don’t like about yourself.”

All the girls are helped prepare for their dates by Nathan Palmer, a fashion designer and stylist, who after becoming their confidante provides them with a simple black dress bespoke to their personalities.

Before lockdown Michaela was looking for a job in a corporate law firm and was working part time for a retailer in House of Fraser.

Initially ‘mortified’ about taking part in the show, she says the experience taught her something valuable about being self-conscious and the need or desire for make-up.

“It really made me think about how important inner confidence is. Another really positive thing was that five other girls I met are just the best and so lovely.

“They even sent me gorgeous flowers for my birthday on Friday and meeting them was such a lovely experience. They were all 100 percent genuine and I’m so glad that I met such great people.”

Pretty Single, a Stellify Media production, begins on BBC One Northern Ireland on Monday, May 25 at 10.35pm. All six episodes in the series will be available on BBC iPlayer after the first episode is broadcast.