Note: The following story contains spoilers for episode 8 of The Golden Bachelorette.
If you’ve seen at least one episode of The Golden Bachelorette, you know that the undeniable favorite of the season is Charles Ling, aka Charles L, a retired data analyst from Pennsylvania.
Fans immediately fell in love with Ling on the first night of “The Golden Bachelorette,” when he was caught checking out the Bachelor mansion. That love deepened throughout the season when Ling, after speaking with his fellow suitors, was able to forgive himself for the many lingering questions he had about his wife’s death.
“I’m kind of excited. [it’s] “Something I probably never expected,” Laing told TheWrap after The Golden Bachelorette Men Tell All. “Honestly, this is a surprise, I would say a big surprise; I never thought they would like me so much, it’s kind of phenomenal. “I’m just grateful … and I’m grateful for these fans.”
Ling didn’t notice the adoration right away because he was spending time in Shanghai while “The Golden Bachelorette” aired in the U.S., but he got his first taste of fame when a fan stopped him at the airport.
Ling believes his story resonated with viewers who had a similar experience but never opened up, as well as viewers who have family members in a similar situation to him.
“As a society, we really need to take care of each other, regardless of our age. Ling said: “Sure, you know we’re the so-called seniors, or whatever they call it, and yet, our feelings are the same and we still have the energy,” Ling said, noting that when he excelled in a kickball game during a history group. “I didn’t know I could do this well and I’ve never played this game before… but when opportunity knocks on your door, good things happen.”
Ling hopes that viewers will be encouraged to open up to what’s out there after watching her story, and she praised Joan Vassos of The Golden Bachelorette for her outreach and openness, saying, “I have to give her credit. He has the courage to share his life. “Some people, for whatever reason, stop working, but that wasn’t her.”
Ling appears on Tell All with a new black hairstyle, and seems to be the favorite to become the next “Golden Bachelor” (the show has yet to be officially renewed by ABC). During Tell All, a fan pleaded with Ling to become the next “Golden Bachelor” on behalf of Bachelor Nation, adding that her mother is single.
Ling said he could potentially be asked to run ABC’s reality dating show: “That’s kind of a new idea,” he said. “I haven’t watched many episodes of the last Golden Bachelor, so I know some of it, but not the whole picture. I’ll see what happens and what I have to do, but not right now.
The Golden Bachelorette airs every Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC and the following day on Hulu.