Although 30 people were expected for the first Geeks and Nerds Speed Dating event at Poacher’s Arms, about 10 showed up.
Kira Flynn and Ira Timothy, co-organizers of the Geeks and Nerds Speed Dating event, are hoping to bring it back in two months.
“I don’t see any reason why it wouldn’t be a bigger success than last time,” Timothy says, “The good thing is people showed up and they knew what was going on.”
Flynn adds that many others were interested in coming, but were shy about it or had work. However, their next one will be in May, so those interested have plenty of time to plan ahead.
Timothy says London has plenty of comic book, anime and video game enthusiasts. “We have clubs that are dedicated to it. We’ve got video game companies that are developing here in London. We thought that it was the perfect niche for it. It’s the perfect theme that identifies the Forest City.”
He adds that while there have been other speed dating events in London, the event is the first of its kind.”There’s a lot of great stuff that goes on around London, but a lot of it is things you can get at any other city,” Timothy explains, “You go to Toronto, you go to Windsor, they have concerts, they have orchestras, things like that. That’s all well and good, but we really thought it would be nice to have something that makes it stand out.”
Flynn says that London has a variety of people, from students to young families to newcomers, but everyone has a bit of a nerdy side. “They love ‘The Simpsons’ or they play D&D, or they play video games or they hang out and play Candy Crush on their phone in coffee shops.”
The next Geeks and Nerds Speed Dating event will be held on May 1st.