AU student appears in The Bachelorette DK

Omnibus meets Theis Andersen for a one-on-one date in the sunny forest Riis Skov. And while the sun may well be shining in these spring days, Omnibus’ one-on-one date undoubtedly takes place in a climate slightly different from that of Sicily, where The Bachelorette is filmed. And don’t worry, this time he hasn’t ‘cheated’ his way into a date – Omnibus invited him fair and square. 

If you haven’t been following Danish broadcaster TV 2’s popular dating show, The Bachelorette, which premiered on 21 April, you might not be entirely sure why Theis Andersen might have cheated his way into an interview with Omnibus – or who he even is. Theis Andersen is studying business administration at Aarhus University and is currently among the suitors in the latest season of The Bachelorette, which features 16 men competing for the hearts of two women.

In the fourth episode of the season, one of the two women, Sofie Sytnik, asks the men to answer 13 questions about themselves. She has also answered the questions herself and will go on a group date with the two suitors whose answers most and least closely match her own. 

Theis Andersen explains that he and several other of the men try to work out what Sofie Sytnik has answered, so that they can give either the right or the wrong answer in order to be invited on a date. But since time is also a factor, he opts for the latter strategy.

“I just wanted to get the ball rolling, and I really want to have a chat with these two women,” says Theis Andersen, who, at that point, hadn’t yet managed to go on a date with the girls. 

“I got all 13 wrong, and I think that’s quite impressive,” he says.

“Theis the Cheat”

And Theis Andersen did indeed end up going on the group date with Sofie Sytnik, alongside another suitor. Some users on the anonymous internet forum Reddit weren’t entirely happy about this, says Theis Andersen, who, contrary to TV 2’s recommendations to participants, has been taking a look at Reddit.

 “People on Reddit have been calling me ‘Theis the Cheat’,” he says, adding:

“I’m well aware of the sort of platform it is, and I was also prepared for people to post on there.”

“I’m mainly just curious, but it’s nice to experience that when something less positive is written, it doesn’t bother me,” he says, emphasising that he wasn’t the only one to use the unconventional strategy. 

Theis Andersen admits, however, that he wouldn’t pull the same stunt with the 13 questions now that he knows Sofie Sytnik personally. He doesn't see himself as a fraud. He wouldn't dream of cheating in an exam either.

Fellow students persuaded him to sign up for the show 

Theis Andersen has just submitted his bachelor’s exam, for which he has to give an oral defence later in May.  

And it was also at the university that some friends from his study group persuaded Theis Andersen to sign up as a suitor for The Bachelorette. 

“My female friends at uni have probably heard me talk a lot about dating here in Aarhus, and I’m in my mid-twenties and have been single for three years, so I think they could just see me fitting into a show like that,” he says. 

After a lengthy casting process, Theis Andersen ended up at the final casting at TV 2’s office in Copenhagen. 

“There are loads of editors and people sitting there watching you while you’re being interviewed about your love life. It felt a bit like an oral exam. Bizarre," he says. 

That same evening, he received a text message from the caster saying that they would like Theis Andersen to appear on the show. 

Secretive 

As a result, Theis Andersen had to miss the first few weeks of the autumn semester as he was filming The Bachelorette in Sicily. From the filming in August until the premiere in April, Theis Andersen has been unable to tell his university friends – the very ones who had persuaded him to sign up in the first place – anything about what had happened in Sicily. 

“It’s actually been a bit awkward, because we can’t talk about everything anymore now that we can’t talk about this,” he says. 

“Lots of people know I’ve been away, but I can’t go into any details. Not even to my closest friends and family,” says Theis Andersen.

Men's group

With four seasons under its belt, The Bachelorette has become a favourite among viewers, and according to TV 2, last year’s season attracted an average of 424,000 viewers per episode. 

However, it doesn’t seem like the intense public scrutiny caused Theis Andersen to hesitate when signing up. And it wasn’t just because of the study group’s recommendation that he ended up applying. 

“I signed up to try something completely new – both in terms of dating and just for the experience,” he says. 

“I’m adventurous, so I could feel something tugging at me,” he says. 

According to Theis Andersen, it wasn’t just the thought of potentially meeting the love of his life under the Sicilian sun that motivated him to sign up. It was also the thought of a community.  

“I’ve sometimes missed having a group of guy friends where there was space to be vulnerable and talk about your feelings, and that’s exactly what I found in Sicily,” he says. 

The men only left the villa if they were asked out on a date. So the days were spent playing board games, having deep conversations, and enjoying plenty of sunshine by the pool, he says. 

“We could really talk about love and feelings and cry in front of each other, and it’s been an amazing experience, because that’s not something I’ve come across at university,” he says. 

“It’s been an absolutely insane experience. They took our phones away almost as soon as we arrived, so we bonded incredibly quickly,” says Theis Andersen. 

Although the men compete to win the two girls’ final rose, the community with the other men has also meant a great deal to Theis Andersen. 

“My relationship with the guys meant a lot to me down there, so it was also important for me to support them. It was hard for me to be selfish, even though you kind of have to be,” he says. 

“We were good at supporting one another. I didn’t see the other guys as rivals, even though we probably were. For me, it was just about friendship, and I was genuinely happy for the others if they came home from a date with a rose,” he says. 

“It’s a lot of suitors for just two women, so it’s a bit naive to go down there thinking you’ll immediately get to go on lots of dates,” says Theis Andersen.

Not a familiar face… yet

According to Theis Andersen himself, he hasn’t really noticed the fame yet. He does, however, notice when people do a double-take at him when he’s at a lecture or shopping for groceries at Rema 1000. 

“When I’m in Rema, I don’t have music playing in my AirPods, but I still wear them. I keep my eyes and ears open, and I’ve become more self-aware when I’m in public,” he says. 

“There are a lot of old friends that I haven’t spoken to for years who’ve written me to ask what I’m doing on the show,” he says. 

Have any of your exes been in touch? 

“No,” he says. 

There are seven participants from Aarhus in this year’s season, and they often meet up and hang out, says Theis Andersen. Over the weekend, they were visited by most of the participants from Copenhagen – including Mie Borup, who is one of the two women being courted on the show. 

“We went to a street party on Jægergårdsgade during the weekend. Lots of people came over wanting a photo,” he says.

“That was kind of wild to experience,” says Theis Andersen. 

If Theis Andersen goes far in the show, he may well become a familiar sight on the streets of Aarhus. 

“I haven’t really prepared myself for the possibility of being recognised. I'm not looking to become an influencer, so that's not really what's been on my mind," he says.

 Instead, Theis Andersen says that before leaving for Sicily, he thought that even if he didn’t end up with the final rose, the show might give him the chance to meet women that he wouldn’t otherwise encounter in his everyday life. 

But, if you’re currently thinking that Theis from The Bachelorette looks cute, you’ll have to wait until the show is finished. Theis Andersen won’t reveal whether he’s single, in a relationship, or whether he’ll end up with the final rose. 

“I can’t answer that,” Theis Andersen laughs. 

“People will just have to watch,” he says. 

You can watch The Bachelorette every Tuesday to Thursday on TV 2 Play. 

This text is machine translated and post-edited by Mie Skov Jeppesen.