A shortage of single straight men has shut down a regular speed dating night but a gay and lesbian version is about to take off.

Liz D'Arcy, 46, and Sandra Cooley, 32, co-founders of Brighton-based Pink Date, will be playing cupid when they launch their first same-sex speed dating night on Thursday.

Liz said: "We had a friend who wanted to start a speed dating company and he asked us if we would get involved and maybe do a gay and lesbian night.

"We just thought, why not have our own company?"

Sandra, Liz's partner of five years, said: "There are a great number of people sick of the gay scene.

"This is something different for people who don't want to be a part of that world."

Sandra and Liz, of Richmond Place, Brighton, have spent the past six months planning the event - which involved attending some speed dating evenings themselves.

Liz said: "I went to a lesbian night in March and found they had not put any effort in to it.

"When I talked to the women who were there they had travelled from Surrey, from Essex, from all over.

"They were quite disappointed there weren't a great deal of people there.

"The heterosexual community has enjoyed the fruits of speed dating for a quite a while now and there is a need for this in the gay and lesbian community."

For those unsure of what to expect, the night will begin with some ice-breaking activities.

Sandra said: "I can understand people are quite nervous of it - I have gone through the experience myself. But getting through the door is the scariest bit. Once you are there it's wonderful.

"We'll play games where you have to go and find a partner so it means you have to go and talk to other people. It's not going to be difficult, just silly and frivolous."

Due to a shortage of eligible bachelors in Brighton, heterosexual speed dating has taken a nosedive.

After two years of running a monthly speed dating evening at the Sussex Arts Club in Ship Street, the Eligible Brighton group decided to dump the event.

Organisers said they had "exhausted" Brighton of its eligible bachelors and decided to give up trying to attract males looking for love.

An Eligible spokeswoman said: "Statistics show men are on the decline.

"We all knew it would be a fad-style industry. I think people are just getting a bit bored with it now."

Sarah Hazlehurst, 45, a teacher trainer from Brighton, said she was disappointed when she went speed dating.

She said: "There were about 39 women to 22 men, which resulted in long boring waits for the women and decreased the chances of meeting anyone nice."

In speed dating, there is normally an equal number of men and women.

They are given three minutes to chat before moving on to the next person.

Each person has a scorecard, which they tick to indicate who they want to see again.

Organisers match the ticks and contact the lucky singles with details of their matches.

Sarah was left fuming after paying for a babysitter for her daughter and new clothes for the event.

She said: "The main complaint I have is the staff didn't take in everyone's scorecards.

"We went to the bar and they disappeared before collecting them."

The spokeswoman for Eligible said: "People were categorically told they had to hand in their forms before they left the room.

"Staff should have been standing by the door to collect them.

"We have always prided ourselves on being 100 per cent professional and we are awfully sorry if anyone has been disappointed in the service."

Sandra and Liz of Pink Date offer an online service that updates participants.

Members log on after the event to find out if they have attracted interest.

The launch of Pink Date starts with the lesbian evening on Thursday at the Brighton Royal Hotel, Grand Parade, at 7pm.