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Thai Brides

In this episode Louis visits Bangkok, Thailand, to explore the subculture of Western gentlemen who travel to the East in search of female companions. He seeks to find out why by speaking to some people involved, including a man who runs a dating agency, some of his customers, and a few Thai brides themselves.

Episode	Thai Brides
Airdate	23/10/00
Length	47 minutes

Episode Guide

Louis starts off his investigation by visiting a business called Anglo-Thai Introductions and speaking to the owner Ronnie Conrad. The business catalogues Thai females who have registered with the interest of being selected by a Western man to meet, and then possibly date or go further depending on the relationship potential. Prospective women will provide basic details beford recording a video of themselves for the men to look at and select. These women are put into 'A' and 'B' files according to who is "more attractive". It isn't made clear however who makes the decision on whether a lady is attractive enough for the 'A' film.

After speaking to Ronnie about his agency, Louis learns that Ronnie is married to a Thai lady, whom they shall be meeting later that evening. When the evening comes it turns out that Ronnie was married to a Thai women for approximately two years, but recently they have split up. Louis is shocked to hear however that Ronnie has a new female friend, whom he met only two days previously, and they are to get married within a matter of days! It did take longer than usual for her to fall in love with Ronnie, about 3 hours according to him.

The next day Louis signs up himself for the dating agency, and gets to grips with the proceedure, asking whether they would check if he claimed to earn £1 million a year. After browsing through Ronnie's showcase of A-list ladies, Louis decides to take a look at the B-list members too, before watching a large selection of the videos mentioned earlier. Louis hands a list of potential brides to Ronnie before continuing on his way.

Theroux then contacts Thai Professional Introduction Services, another Thai Bride agency run by Lawrence Lynch. He visits one of their clients, Lake Palmer (a 56 year old from Great Yarmouth who is "very much alone"), at his current residence. A friendly chat exposes Lake's evident lonliness and desire to find love, as well as his anger issues (later revealed to stem from post-traumatic stress disorder). Lake shows Louis his "list of questions", an A4 sheet of notes which he can refer to when chatting to his date should he forget to ask something important. Palmer also reveals his love for singing and karaoke and after sharing a brief duet with Louis, the pair make their way to Thai Professional Introduction Services to meet Lawrence and Lake's date.

Before the date, Lawrence holds a discussion on etiquette to prepare Lake for his meeting. Lake's anger does briefly bubble to the surface on account of Lynch's attitude with Lake, but quickly subsides on account of Louis' calming effect on him. The triage also discuss the lure of Thai women and what makes them appealing compared to Western women before the date. The date begins proper once the interpreter arrives. Lake begins to ask questions from his list, while Louis and Lawrence observe the date from the corner of the room. Lake's desire to find love is made clear during this time, as he feels like "a flower without any water" who "craves for love and affection". Shortly afterwards, the couple proceed to the "Cabbages and Condoms" restaurant where the date continues, although Louis feels that Lake may be moving "a little too fast". The two depart after the meal and Louis returns to Anglo-Thai Introductions after Ronnie informs him that there has been an interest in him.

Some have theorised that when Lake loses his temper with Lawrence (see Quotes) it is due to a ringing phone which can be heard slightly in the background. The ringtone, "William Tell" music found commonly on Nokia handsets, may have sparked anger from Palmer due to his post-traumatic stress disorder.

Ronnie has told Louis' list of potential ladies a little about him and begins to introduce them one by one. Louis asks them simple questions regarding their age, what they are looking for in a husband and where they would like to live. After the discussions, Ronnie discovers all of the ladies Louis has met are willing to see him again. Despite the wide range of women at his whim, Louis says he will leave it at that and not persue any further relationship with any of the women. Louis concludes again that perhaps Western men move too fast when it comes to Thai women, and "right on cue" recieves a phone call off Lawrence Lynch about Lake's progress.

The date which we were shown earlier in the show has since ended, despite Lake's clear enthusiasm. Lake went on to meet a further two women, one of which caught his eye. After a half an hour chat, Lake went on a date with her that evening. Two days have since passed and Lawrence informs Louis that they have since gotten married, much to the obvious shock of Theroux. Again, Louis believes Lake has acted much too quickly and may have rushed into the marriage. Lawrence assures Louis he does not pressure couples into marriage and reminds him Thai Professional Introduction Services inform both parties of each other to ensure they know everything about the other before they meet.

Louis visits Lake once more, to meet the "happy couple". Greeted at the door by a clearly jubilant Palmer, we find the last two days have been very hectic. After finding out they could make each other happy, they got married. When Louis questions Lake's hasty marriage, Lake reminds him that "When you see a bargain, do you let it get away?", explains there is chemistry between the two and wanders off to another room. Louis asks Mrs. Palmer what she liked about her new husband when she first met him, to which she suggests he is a good friend, and that she does not need money from the relationship. She is also aware of his medication. Lake emerges once more with a candle, a gift to signify his undying love for his new bride. Still in shock, a voiceover reminds us "I wasn't quite sure what I'd just seen, but I knew it was time for me to leave".

Follow-up

"I left Thailand feeling confused. Guys like Lake were definitely finding happiness but for how long and at what price, it was too early too say" - Louis Theroux's final line in Thai Brides

This line is a strange preminition of things to come, as we are informed at the end of the documentary that Ronnie and Mam were married for a mere eight days. More eerily, Lake Palmer's marriage ended in disaster also. After an eight month relationship, Lake was left for a rich European man, after his wife conned him out of of £12,000. As a result he has had a nervous breakdown and still battles with depression and lonliness.

Link to full article

Quotes

External Links

• http://www.thai-professional.com/ - Thai Professional Introductions (Lawrence Lynch and Lake Palmer)
• http://www.sundaymail.co.uk/news/tm_objectid=14266672 Follow Up On Lake Palmer