I have been talking to a man called Oliver, who — if that is really him in the photograph — is 6ft 3in and darkly handsome. He is also 20 years younger than me.

They have a different perspective

Prior to his first message, he had looked at my profile almost every day for weeks, unaware or not bothered that the site notches up each viewing. Is it the picture? Is it my age?

The alpha control freak intellectual snob thing? Eventually, last weekend there source a message. I told him, although it took five paragraphs, and a lot of rewrites. At the end of my answer, I asked how he was.

He took my quaint shilling talk in his stride, perhaps aware that it was intended to emphasise our age difference.

Why would a tall, handsome man date a woman 20 years his senior?

You never talk back. Do you want to meet for dinner? It was a lie. Looking forward to our first date. A second silence fell, while I contemplated his response, and he contemplated it also.

I broke the silence.

They're grounded and self-assured

Tell me more about yourself. He never replies to my query about how he is. Age-old conundrum? This article is more than 9 years old. Explore more on these topics Online dating Relationships Family Dating features. Reuse this content. Most viewed.