The Great Adventure: Love in the Time of Tinder

Upcoming event, The Great Adventure: Love in the Time of Tinder, explores why we are lonelier than ever, despite the rise of dating apps.

With the rise of dating apps such as Tinder and Bumble, its hard to believe in old-school, fairy-tale romance these days. ‘Love at first sight’ now means swiping right, rather than bumping into a romantic interest at a random coffee shop. We’re spending more and more hours perfecting our selfie in fear of being swiped left, than actually going out and meeting people. Tinder has an estimated 50 million users, the majority of whom are hoping to match up for a first-date encounter. Surely this would mean we are reconnecting with each other, all be it in a not-so-natural way? Wrong. Studies show that we are lonelier than ever.

The Institute of Art (IAI) Great Adventure event takes place from 29 to 30 April at The Globe at Hay, Hay-on-Wye, exploring the digital age of love and relationships through debates, talks and workshops. Alongside this are live music performances, drinks and dinner. This is a truly unique event discussing topics that are more than relevant today. With neuroscientists, relationship experts and philosophers leading the event, you can be sure to dive into some heated and well-informed discussions. Find out why our nation is suffering from loneliness and what has made our modern world so hostile to love.

Here are our top 5 picks from the event.

Talk: Surviving the Digital Age

Feeling overwhelmed by the haul of dating apps? CEO of Relate, the UK’s largest relationship counselling service, Chris Sherwood talks about how to survive love with modern technology.

When: Saturday, 4.15pm

Debate: Love Story

Can we construct the romantic narrative? Would power over love’s story improve the experience? Or is love a wild adventure left best untamed? These are just a few questions that will be discussed in this debate around whether or not love is built through hard work, or just by chance. Led by Chris Sherwood and BAFTA-nominated director Martha Fiennes.

When: Saturday, 10.30am

Workshop: The Art of Being Single

Being single isn’t all bad, in fact some of us prefer it. Author of Screw the Fairytale and relationship expert Helen Croydon explores why being single is becoming a choice and how this could actually improve our experiences in love. We don’t feel so bad after all!

When: 1.15pm, Saturday

Banquet Dinner

Although not included in the ticket price, this candle-lit dinner is a great chance to meet like-minded people and reflect on the day’s discussions.

When: Saturday, 7pm

Debate: Love Me Tinder

School of Life relationship coach Susan Quilliam, Oxford neuroscientist Anders Sandberg, and King’s College London philosopher and author of Middle Age Christopher Hamilton debate the pros and cons of dating technology. Does too much choice do more harm than good? The science behind Tinder is the hot topic of this debate.

When: Sunday, 3pm