WHEN Jimmy Hill decided to pop the question to his childhood sweetheart Josie Stanford he was determined to do it in style.

For the next three months, the 22-year-old Bournemouth call centre worker pulled out all the stops, using Facebook to gather a flash mob choir to witness his unforgettable proposal.

Jimmy, from Southbourne, managed to keep the lavish preparations a secret from Josie who thought they were going to take in the London sights and see a show on Monday.

But when they reached Piccadilly Circus at 2pm, following a tour of the capital, romance was definitely in the air. Josie, 22, said: “It was raining and my feet were aching. Jimmy asked me if I wanted to sit down. A man came and sat down beside us with his guitar and Jimmy asked if he could borrow it.

“Jimmy was a busker so I still didn’t realise what was going on. Then he started singing ‘Your Love Keeps Lifting Me Higher’ and people around us started joining in.

“I thought they were just tourists at first but then more and more gathered and I spotted three of our friends in the crowd.

“Jimmy got down on one knee and proposed; I was crying but managed to say a gurgled ‘yes’. It was scary, but great at the same time.”

The couple, who met at Moordown Baptist Church youth group when they were 14, are now planning to tie the knot there in November.

Josie, a hotel receptionist from Ensbury Park, said: “Jimmy is a true romantic and he is always surprising me on special occasions.

“We had discussed getting married; we are Christians so it is very important to us. I had been expecting Jimmy to propose later in the year but never on such a dramatic scale, in front of the West End Gospel Choir.”