Two weeks ago, as we flew over our hometown of London with the sun setting behind us - I proposed. IN A HELICOPTER. This is the story of how I met the girl of my dreams and ended up on one knee at a dizzying height above the capital.
Five years ago I would not have believed that first sentence, not least because I never would have stepped foot (let alone gone down on one knee) in a helicopter. But I guess being in love with an adrenaline junkie who is perfect for you has had its effects.
And If you’d told me back in 2015 that Beth, the woman I had spent just one night with after taking her home from our mutual favourite Camden nightclub was going to be the one to get me on a helicopter, and become my future bride, I would have told you to get your head checked. I’ve since learned that all those stories about hook-up culture leading to a decline in traditional relationships were false after all.
Moving from a hook-up, to casual dating, to exclusive dating, to knowing this was the woman I want to spend my whole life with wasn’t easy with Beth. From that very first day she had me going on fearless adventures with her, turning my usual “let’s call it a night” at 9pm attitude into a party stretching well into the early hours. Soon, my annual holidays to Malta became adventure tours in South America and Asia. To this day, she makes my life more exciting; so I knew I really had to pull it out of the bag when it came to asking her to spend the rest of her life with me.
The helicopter proposal
My heart was already racing as the helicopter took off, but the team at High Flying Helicopter were so professional and clearly massively skilled at flying that my pulse was down to pre-proposal jitters only! I took the ring out of my pocket as she was glued to the view of the jaw-droppingly beautiful London skyline, before getting on one knee and popping the question. Needless to say, she never saw it coming. Beth was so surprised at the sight of me in a helicopter (and so distracted by the fantastic views) that the upcoming proposal didn’t even cross her mind.
In case you were wondering, she said yes, so the romantic spa getaway I had planned for afterwards went ahead too! We were even chauffeured there in a limousine by the High Flying Helicopter team after our helicopter experience. (Don’t tell Beth but I was just a little pleased to be back on the ground.)
After years with this woman that spent countless hours pleading with me to live life on the edge, a helicopter proposal was the ideal choice for us. I could not have entertained the idea of choosing a more traditional proposal option for this woman that dragged me out of my comfortable way of living. My only fear now is what the wedding is going to have in store!
