Single radio producer Jana Hocking video calls men to avoid being catfished on first dates

An unlucky in love radio producer has devised a simple trick to avoid being disappointed on first dates.

When Sydney’s lockdown is eventually lifted, ‘perennially single’ Jana Hocking said she plans to video call all potential suitors before meeting them in real life.

Tired of endless disappointment on the Harbour City dating scene, the 36-year-old hopes the calls will bring an end to being ‘catfished’ by men who look and act differently than they appear to in their online profiles.

‘That’s one of the things I am going to take out of the dating world after the pandemic,’ she said on her news.com.au podcast, Kinda Sorta Dating. 

Instead of heading out to a bar, the Triple M host said she will start with Skype dates to get a sense of who she has been speaking to.

‘There’s nothing worse then getting all dolled up, ready to go out, paying for your Uber, paying for your new outfit and sitting down, knowing in 30 seconds that this is not the person for you and he was nothing like he looked like on the app,’ she said.

Jana has become something of a guru on the Australian dating scene by sharing her romantic escapades and advice for finding ‘the one’.

The 36-year-old (pictured) hopes the calls will bring an end to being ‘catfished’ by men who look and act differently than they appear to in their online profiles

Jana (pictured) has become something of a guru on the Australian dating scene by sharing her romantic escapades and advice for finding ‘the one’

She recently told fans she feels it is better to keep past experiences that no longer represent who you are as a person to yourself in the early days of dating.

Jana recently recounted her second date with an attractive man, which quickly turned sour when he revealed he had been arrested – twice.

When she grilled her date about the charges, he admitted he to ‘accidentally’ kidnapping someone and another more sinister offence that Jana preferred not to disclose.

Jana said the experience left her wondering if there are some things better left unsaid until you get to know someone on a level deeper than small talk.

Jana (pictured) recently recounted her second date with an attractive man which quickly turned sour when he revealed he had been arrested – twice

In a column for news.com.au, Jana revealed she had only agreed to a second date because the man was ‘hot’.

She said all was going ‘swimmingly’ until he brought up his recent arrests.

The man explained he had been mistakenly booked for kidnapping while walking home from a costume party, dressed as a commando with a fake gun and a real knife.

Following an argument with a man waiting at a bus stop, Jana’s date said he ‘jokingly’ grabbed the commuter around the neck and dragged him around the corner ‘to spook him’. 

He said a police car was waiting for him when he got home and he was taken to spend a night in a cell. But the criminal revelations didn’t stop there.

‘As I looked at him with a slightly mortified look, he chuckled and goes “yeah so that was the first time”,’ Jana recalled.

The experience left Jana (pictured) wondering if there are some things better left unsaid until you get to know someone on a level deeper than small talk

She said the second incident is ‘slightly darker’ and did not disclose any further details.

While Jana said she was glad her date had told her about his indiscretions so she could avoid wasting any more time on him, she couldn’t help but wonder if there are some things you should keep to yourself.

‘Without doubt I have done some mighty dumb things in my life, but do I want to put it on a notice board and parade it about for everyone to see?’ she wrote. 

Jana encouraged singles to learn a lesson from her story.

Sure, you may be having a great conversation and feel comfortable to share some of your life experiences. However, some silly things we’ve done in the past should stay exactly there. In the past,’ she said.