'We're over the Moon' after eclipse engagement in Guernsey

A bride-to-be said she was "over the Moon" after her partner of three years surprised her by proposing as they watched the recent partial eclipse of the sun at a beauty spot where they had one of their first dates.

Jade Goracy told the BBC Alain Branquet told her he had arranged a photoshoot with photographer Ben Fiore who had put a shout out for islanders who wanted to record special memories of the eclipse.

She said: "We went to the headland at Lihou, where we went on a picnic on one of our first dates.

"It was already a fantastic evening anyway and with the proposal added on top, I was taken by surprise."

The couple first met as children aged eight and later "bumped into each other again at social events", Goracy, who works in aviation safety, said.

She said Branquet, a motor mechanic and business partner at a motorcycle company, later told her he had been planning a proposal since the start of the year.

The 30-year-olds have been dating for three years and have not yet set a wedding date.

Goracy said: "All of our friends and family are just over the Moon as we are."

Branquet said: "There was quite a lot of nerves and planning that went into it, but it all worked out really well."

Photographer Ben Fiore said: "I'm always looking to photograph something different and push what's possible creatively.

"Whether it's a portrait, proposal, wedding or a completely crazy idea, I'm always up for trying to turn it into an image people will remember."

He said he and Branquet "spent five days working out the details, making sure the location, timing and photography all came together smoothly".

Follow BBC Guernsey on X, external and Facebook, external and Instagram, external. Send your story ideas to [email protected], external.