Seven of the most romantic Leeds proposals including one in front of a huge Elland Road crowd

Each one was the product of careful thought and planning, with a little help along the way from friends, family, a tour guide, a DJ, a busker or even Leeds United club officials. Here we take a look back at some of the most memorable Leeds proposals to make the headlines in the past decade.

The Elland Road proposal

Geir Ellingsen took the brave decision to propose in front of a huge Leeds United crowd when he used the big screen at Elland Road to ask Susann Tettli, 28, to marry him in April 2022. The couple had travelled more than 500 miles from their home in Norway with the Scandinavian Supporters Club to watch a match.

Geir, 41, later told the YEP that he always planned to propose in Leeds, but "not necessarily at Elland Road". However, club staff made his dreams come true when they agreed to show a huge picture of himself and Susann during half-time.

The proposal became a big talking point on social media when people questioned Geir's decision to place the ring on Susann's right hand. He said: "I put the ring on the right hand, which is what we do in Norway. It wasn't me being dizzy, although the pulse was racing!"

The lantern festival proposal

Stefan Hibbitt, 23, chose the Magical Lantern Festival in Roundhay Park as the scene of his proposal to 22-year-old Amy Brown in December 2016. He dropped to one knee in front of the romantic ‘Love Bridge’, with family members and event organisers helping to make sure it all went to plan.

Stefan, from Alwoodley, said: “I’m quite a jokey guy and have joked about proposing before, but I was so nervous before doing it for real. Amy loved it – she loved the lantern event anyway, so the venue and spot was perfect.”

The aeroplane proposal

When it comes to public proposals, it doesn’t get much bigger than hiring a plane to trail a banner across the skies of Leeds. Ali Ayman, 24, did just that in April 2019 when he asked 22-year-old Sommer Sheridan to marry him during a dinner date at rooftop bar Angelica.

The junior doctor suggested that they head outside onto the terrace and handed Sommer a piece of paper telling her to look up at the sky. It was then that she spotted the banner reading: “Sommer will you marry me?”

She said: “I was really shocked, I wasn't expecting it at all. Of course, I said yes. There were a couple of others out on the terrace who started clapping when it happened.”

The rock club proposal

As Sarah Turfrey’s favourite Enter Shikari song began to play at the Key Club’s Slam Dunk night in April 2022, she was taken aback to hear the DJ calling out her name. Boyfriend Adam Helliwell, 23, was waiting for her on the stage and dropped to one knee.

Sarah, 22, said: "I had a brief moment of 'this can't be real - I'm either asleep and I'm dreaming it or someone is having me on'. But then I could tell by the way he was looking at me, I thought 'this is absolutely adorable! It's not somewhere I ever thought 'I want someone to propose to me here', but now I look back on it, I think it's such a 'me' thing.

The Tudor mansion proposal

Jeff Rowland chosen Temple Newsam House as the scene of his proposal in on Valentine’s Day in 2017, using its stunning Channon cabinet as the hiding place for the engagement ring. Crafted in 1750, the cabinet hides a number of intricate secret drawers and compartments that were used to conceal aristocrats’ love notes and treasures.

A member of staff led Jeff, 34, and girlfriend Sarah Reynolds, 32, on a tour of the house, opening each drawer of the cabinet until the ring was revealed. Sarah said: "I shouldn’t have been surprised Jeff would organise something so thoughtful and unique, but I was amazed he managed to create this whole surprise without me having a clue. When I spotted the ring I broke down into tears. It was an incredibly creative and beautiful way to ask."

The escape room proposal

There were just minutes left on the clock when Becky Ladley solved the final puzzle at Escape Hunt Leeds’ swashbuckling adventure Blackbeard’s Treasure in November 2018. What the 28-year-old marketing executive hadn’t expected to find was a dazzling engagement ring from boyfriend Tim Campbell.

Tim, 27, had roped in staff to hide the ring in a treasure chest, which would only open if escape room fan Becky and her friends solved a series of brain-teasing clues. He said: “I still can’t believe I managed to pull off my crazy idea of an escape room wedding proposal. As massive gamers and escape room fans, proposing to Becky in this way felt incredibly personal.”

The busker proposal

Peter Knowles and girlfriend Jessica Jarrett, 29, had been out for a romantic meal at The Botanist in December 2019. It turned into a truly memorable evening though as they strolled through Trinity Leeds and stopped in front of festive love heart.

It was there that Peter, 38, dropped to one knee as a busker appeared to serenade them with their favourite song – Better Half of Me by Tom Walker. Service engineer Peter said: “When I knew I wanted to propose, I wanted to go the extra mile. She’s absolutely beautiful and worth the effort.

“We had to time everything just right. When the busker appeared, Jess didn’t know what was going on so I explained that the busker was actually there for her. I told her I loved her and wanted to spend the rest of my life with her, and she said yes!”

Have you popped the question on Valentine’s Day 2023? Email [email protected] if you’d like to share your proposal story.