Irishman sets romantic treasure hunt before proposing to his girlfriend

A romantic Irishman gave his partner an anniversary she will never forget when he sent her on a treasure hunt across the city.

Stephen Kenny left clues all over Belfast for his girlfriend Lindsay Crane to follow, until she reached the destination – and Stephen proposed to her.

Lindsay told Belfast Live: “He had given me a card on Sunday night for our first anniversary on Monday and told me not to open it until then.

“So when I opened it on Monday morning inside there were two smaller cards, like little wedding invitations and £100 for petrol and food etc, and he said I was going to be going out with my sister for the day.
“So I opened the first wee card and it was the first clue which took us to Dundonald Ice Bowl which is where we had our first date.

“I went in and the guy I had to ask for came down with a locker key and it was the same one we used when we were there.
“Along with each of the six clues there was a little gift, so I had to go into each place and ask for a certain person who would then give me the next clue.
“We were out from 12noon until 7pm that night, he sent us for lunch and dinner. He just put so much thought into it, it’s crazy, it was done so well.
“We had a wee baby just over a week ago and he had already arranged for my mum and dad to come and pick up the baby and look after him, I couldn’t believe that he had done any of this.”
The treasure hunt took Lindsay on a journey back in time via key moments in her relationship with Stephen.

Lindsay went to the Concentrix, which is where she and Stephen worked when they first met. She also went to Dublin Road cinema, Benedict’s Hotel and the hospital where their daughter was born.
Lindsay said: “He sent us for lunch to Benedict’s which is where we had our first meal together and he had even arranged for us to sit at the same table we sat at, it was crazy.
“He left the next clue at the Royal along with a picture we had taken of the three of us after the baby was born.”
Eventually the clues led Lindsay to the Devenish where Stephen was waiting for her. Dressed in his best suit, Stephen got down on one knee and proposed to Lindsay.
She said: “My mum said to me, ‘Did I ever think that’s where it was going?’, but only for a split second it went into my head but I thought, ‘No way because where would he have got the ring? Where would he have got this?’ etc. It just didn’t seem to be leading there.

“We were sitting in the car and my sister beeped the horn and I looked up and it took me a minute to register that they guy standing outside in a suit was Stephen, it just didn’t click with me
“I couldn’t believe it, I got so emotional, and he had our favourite song playing as well, it couldn’t have been more perfect.”
Stephen made sure he had permission from Lindsay’s parents before proposing. Lindsay said: “God love him he was brilliant at it and he had been planning it for months and months and I hadn’t a clue.
“He had even gone and asked my parents for permission and they knew all along and were so happy for us, I just can’t believe everyone was able to keep it a secret for so long.
“He’d even got our friend Clair McAllister to come along and take professional photos of the proposal, it was incredible.
“The last few days have been crazy we’re going to wait a little while before setting a date, it’s all just been amazing.”

Written by Michael Kehoe @michaelcalling