Princess Eugenie says proposal was a 'complete surprise'

Princess Eugenie says proposal was a 'complete surprise'



Princess Eugenie has described her engagement to long-term partner Jack Brooksbank as 'the perfect moment'.



The 27-year-old revealed that she cried and was 'over the moon' after Mr Brooksbank got down on one knee as they watched the sun set over a volcano in Nicaragua earlier this year.



The Queen's granddaughter described the proposal at a 'complete surprise', even though the couple have been together for 'several years'.



She revealed that the Queen was among the first people to know about the engagement, adding that her 'Granny was very happy'.



After the engagement news was revealed to the world by her thrilled parents today, official portraits of the happy couple were released to mark the occasion - and offer that all-important first glimpse of the bride-to-be's ring.



Mr Brooksbank, 31, popped the question earlier this month with the unusual ring; a padparadscha sapphire surrounded by diamonds.



The couple told BBC's the One Show how they had been looking out over a lake and that the 'sun was setting' and the 'birds were flying' just before Mr Brooksbank got down on one knee.



'The lake was so beautiful,' she added. 'The light was just a special light I had never seen. I actually said this is an incredible moment, and then he popped the question, which was really surprising even though we have been together seven years.



'I was over the moon. [It was a] complete surprise. But it was the perfect moment, we couldn't be happier.'



'Granny actually knew right at the beginning [of the engagement]. We left her this weekend and had a lovely time and she was very happy, as was my grandfather.



‘We literally just told out mother and fathers and brothers and sisters and our grandparents.’





Eugenie revealed that she has been wearing the engagement ring for 'literally less than 24 hours', adding that the day of the public announcement had left her feeling 'so strange'.



Introducing her husband-to-be, who was undertaking his first television interview, she said: 'This is Jack, we met when I was 20 and he was 24 and fell in love and we have the same passions and drive for life.



'It's so nice that we get to share this moment with everyone and you get to meet Jack.'



Mr Brooksbank said it was 'love at first sight' when the pair were introduced by friends on a skiing trip to Verbier in 2010.



Speaking of the proposal, he added: 'It was amazing. I found a ring in a jewellers and then proposed to Eugenie without it and came back and we designed the diamonds around this padparadscha sapphire.



'I went and found an amazing sapphire but then didn't want to do anything until Eugenie had signed off on it.



'And what's amazing about it is that it changes colour from every different angle that you look at it, which is what I think of Eugenie. That she changes colour and is just so amazing.





‘I love Eugenie so much and I am so excited to be telling friends and family and very excited to spend a lifetime together.



'[The Queen] was incredibly happy and wished us well, which was amazing. It was very nice that she was so happy for us. It's very, very special to be a part of your family now. Its very, very nice to be a part of it.'



Eugenie added: 'As happy as Jack is to support and love my family, I am just as happy to support his. They're really really wonderful people and they've been so lovely in this whole time.



'Seven years you get to know people well so they're already sort of parents and a big brother.'



When asked about planning for the wedding, Jack joked 'I'm not sure I'll get a word in edgeways', prompting his bride-to-be to reply 'we'll do it together', adding that she expected planning to start 'tomorrow I assume'.





Following the announcement on Monday proud mother-of-two Fergie, 58, took to Twitter to shareher delight with the public in three tweets, which were retweeted by the Duke of York.



In the first, she wrote: 'Total joy!! #engagement @TheDukeOfYork' and included a picture of the couple overlaid with the words: 'A total embrace of goodness and joy. We love Jack and I am so excited to have a son, a brother and a best friend. Eugenie is one of the finest people I know and so together it will be pure harmony.'



The Duke of York has said “I’m just completely overjoyed for them and wish them every happiness”



'Jack is an absolutely outstanding young man and Eugenie and he have got to know each other over a number of years and I'm really thrilled for them,' he added.



'It's now about finding the time and the date and getting it all organised. I think in the Autumn sometime will be the time everyone will be looking at.



He added: We can't fix a date yet, we've got to look at everyone's diaries. It's a bit more complicated than that.



'Today, it's their day and I'm just completely overjoyed for them and wish them every happiness.'