A PROPOSAL written in the sand is the stuff of movies, many would think — however, for one couple, this was a reality, writes Rosie Cripps.

Marcia Rodrigues did not expect to receive a diamond engagement ring when visiting one of her favourite beaches with her partner, James Fisher, one weekend.

However, her romantic boyfriend had clearly gone to a lot of effort when they trekked to the cliffs to see ‘Will You Marry Me Marcia?’ written in huge letters in the sand across the beach at Crackington Haven.

The pair, from Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, are now looking to plan a Cornish wedding in the near future.

Although they do not live in Bude at present, they also hope to one day call the seaside town their home, and join their family.

Marcia spoke to the Post about the surprise engagement, and it’s clear that they have been ‘sweethearts’ since a young age.

She said: “I was not expecting it at all. James and I have been together for seven years — we met when we were both 15, and have been together ever since.

“We don’t live in Bude at the moment, but we have family that live there and hope to join them some point soon. We are also looking to get married in Cornwall.”

James said: “We love going to Bude on holiday, and have family living in St Gennys, so we get to go there quite a lot. The reason I chose Crackington Haven beach was that it has a good view over the beach, and that it’s not very busy. I like to keep myself to myself, apart from with people I know, so a big engagement in front of people was always going to be a big no!”

However, with two family emergencies in Bude occurring over a six-month period, James decided it was time to ask Marcia the big question.

James added: “Within the last six months, we have had two family emergencies down in Bude. The second time, Marcia couldn’t stay with me as long as I’d have liked, and I had to spend the night without her, which was awful for me, as I hadn’t done that for about two years!

“So with all we’d been through, and the fact I had to have a night away from Marcia, that’s when I decided to pop the question — I had it planned for about two months!”