LONDON — Haven’t we all dreamt at some point or another for our lives to be just like the movies? For one British couple, movie magic played out in real life while onboard a British Airways flight.
Joe Harding, 41, knew he wanted to propose to his girlfriend Nicola Lewington, 48 of Southampton, in the most romantic – and surprising – way possible: while down on bended knee onboard flight BA2672 from Gatwick to Larnaca.
“I’d been planning to ask Nicki to marry me for some time but I wasn’t sure where and how. I knew getting down on one knee mid-flight would be a complete surprise so I wrote in to British Airways in the hope that they would be able to help me. All the little touches allowed me to show Nicki just how much I love her and I’m really thankful to British Airways for helping me make the proposal extra special,” he said.
The moment he popped the question was caught on video and is now available to view on the BA Magic page (britishairways.com/en-gb/destinations/where-in-the-world/bamagic). Joe is seen on bended knee in the middle of the aisle in front of a shocked Nicki, holding a series of placards à la ‘Love Actually’. Like the classic movie, Joe explains in writing how Nicki is the love of his life and writes: “This Ogre wants you to be his Princess forever, Nicola Jane Lewington, will you marry me?”
And of course, she said yes!
The romantic moment was made even more special with help from London musical duo, Jack and Joel, who created and performed a song especially for the proposal, with lyrics that incorporated Joe’s favourite things about his girlfriend. BA went even further to cap off the moment with Champagne and headrest covers embroidered with ‘Mr Harding and Mrs Harding to-be’ as a special keepsake for the happy couple.
“I was absolutely speechless when I saw Joe walking down the aisle with notecards. I’m so made up with the way he proposed, it really was like a scene from Love Actually. There is no topping this one, we are walking on air. It definitely hasn’t sunk in yet!” said Nicola.
Captain Amit Saini also weighed in: “When Joe approached us saying he wanted to propose on board one of our flights, we really wanted to help him make his big moment that little bit more memorable. We’ve met and surprised some incredible people over the past year and now we are looking for more people to surprise and help. Over the next few months we’ll be creating even more magic for our customers all over the globe.”
British Airways is asking customers who have booked a trip with them to email their stories in, in the hope of making their trip a little bit more magical. So now everyone can bring home a bit of movie magic like Joe and Nicki!