'I've got really bad taste in men'

Millions rely on Ann Russell's advice to get through the day, and now the cleaner-turned-TikTok star is helping single women find love. Just don't expect her to leap into the dating scene...

- LUISA METCALFE

She's the TikTok "auntie" with an incredible breadth of knowledge and sensible words of advice - now Ann Russell is sharing her tuppence-worth on a subject that might seem surprising.

The former cleaner - who describes herself as a “mad, old, very English bag” - is becoming a dating guru at 62.

According to a survey of 2,000 UK singles between 18 and 35, almost half (43%) are overwhelmed by the “digital debris” of old matches still lingering on their apps, while their phone is a “museum of exes”, filled with messages from former flings.

Ann advises a clear-out: if they ghosted you, let them stay ghosts, she says. Unfollow your exes and delete their number; erase old messages; archive your old Tinder bios - refresh them to reflect who you are now; and match with a focus on quality not quantity.

The combination of the no-nonsense, single mother-of-four adult children and Tinder, Britain's most notorious dating app, might raise an eyebrow, but Ann thinks dating apps are a great idea.

"When I was a young woman, you met men either in your general rounds or at pubs, and lo and behold you were surprised to find out that they were minor alcoholics!

"With dating apps you can be more precise about what you want and what you're looking for. Historically the best way to remove my underwear at high speed was to have me crying with laughter and with apps like Tinder you can suss out someone's sense of humour.

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"People can say something that is an instant 'no', and it saves you time and effort. It also allows you to meet a wide variety of people if the 'you' that you present is the 'you' that you are now - not your profile from a year ago."