WHEN Keith Appleby from York decided to propose to his girlfriend he did it in the most romantic place he could think of - the Guinness brewery in Dublin.

While most people might chose the Eiffel Tower or a gondola ride in Venice to pop the question, for Guinness-mad Keith the famous brewery and museum was an ideal location.

He said: "I had intended to ask her at sometime over the weekend, but I was not aware of where I was going to do it.

"When we got to the top of the Guinness factory it just seemed to be the right time. In one hand I had a nice pint and in the other a lovely woman."

Keith, a council worker from Haxby, said: "Right at the top it is romantic, you are seven storeys high and it is surrounded by glass and you can see the whole of Dublin."

His fiance, Helen Plews, said she was delighted as she said the proposal came as a complete shock. "But he told me he was happy with the two things he wanted in his life - his Guinness and me.

"I'm glad he did it this way. Everybody I speak to says how different it was."

The couple are now planning a wedding next spring.

Updated: 09:22 Saturday, February 14, 2004