Amelia Dimoldenberg Announces the End of ‘Chicken Shop Date’ After 12 Years
Few internet formats have managed to stay culturally relevant for as long as “Chicken Shop Date,” the deadpan celebrity interview series that turned an unconventional first-date premise into a viral phenomenon. What started as an offbeat idea from a teenage writer has since become one of the most recognizable interview formats on the internet.
Amelia Dimoldenberg first launched the concept as a column at just 17 years old for a local youth magazine, before eventually transforming it into a filmed YouTube series in 2014. Over the years, the show became known for pairing Dimoldenberg’s signature awkward, standoffish charm with an unlikely setting: a local chicken shop, chosen specifically because it wasn’t somewhere anyone would expect to be taken on a first date.
Now, after more than a decade of viral episodes, Dimoldenberg has confirmed that “Chicken Shop Date” is coming to an end. The British writer, producer, and host announced the news Thursday on Instagram, revealing that the series will wrap with one final run of episodes.
Dimoldenberg’s announcement leaned heavily into the same reflective, personal tone that made the series resonate with audiences in the first place. “When I was 17, I thought that I might meet the love of my life on a date in a chicken shop. Since then, I’ve spent my entire twenties sat across from the most incredible people, people I’d always dreamt of meeting. All of them charmed me (some more than others), and I definitely charmed them,” Dimoldenberg wrote, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
She went on to describe the show as something deeply personal, comparing it to her own version of a romantic comedy playing out in real time. “To me, the show is my very own romcom, and I have loved being able to share it with you. I am so grateful to everyone who has followed me on this journey and found a bit of joy in these episodes,” Dimoldenberg wrote, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Even while confirming the ending, Dimoldenberg made clear the decision wasn’t an easy one. “I never thought I’d end Chicken Shop Date. I thought maybe it would be a part of my life forever, and in some way it always will,” she added, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Over its 12-year run, “Chicken Shop Date” became known for landing conversations with an impressively eclectic list of guests, including Billie Eilish, Andrew Garfield, Cher, Paul McCartney, Daniel Kaluuya, Central Cee, and Jack Harlow, among many others. The series reportedly built a YouTube following of more than 4.4 million subscribers and surpassed 1 billion total views by its tenth year on the platform.
That success helped Dimoldenberg branch out well beyond her original chicken shop setup. She’s since become a familiar face as an official red carpet correspondent for the Academy Awards, presented shows for Channel 4 and ITV, and even made a cameo appearance as herself in this year’s “The Devil Wears Prada 2.”
Dimoldenberg is already looking ahead to her next chapter, with reports indicating she’s developing a young adult drama series for the BBC, along with an upcoming romantic comedy film with Amazon MGM Studios’ Orion Pictures. According to a statement, the final season will bring together “a last line-up of eclectic guests” as Dimoldenberg closes out the chapter that defined much of her career.
While an exact premiere date for the farewell season hasn’t been announced, the news has already sparked an outpouring of nostalgia from longtime fans reflecting on the show’s most memorable moments.
Are you sad to see ‘Chicken Shop Date’ come to an end?
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