ARE THRILLED TO REVEAL THAT THEY’RE ENGAGED — AND THERE’S A BABY ON THE WAY, TOO
INTERVIEW: EMILY HORAN PHOTOS: KOMING DARMAWAN (INSTAGRAM: @KOMING.DARMAWAN)
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW AND PHOTOS
Surrounded by spectacular views of Bali’s verdant rice terraces, Neil Jones is dancing on air – and there’s not just one, but two special reasons why.
The Strictly Come Dancing professional is thrilled to announce, exclusively in HELLO!, that not only is he engaged to Chyna Mills, his girlfriend of seven months, but the couple are also expecting their first child this autumn.
“After the baby news, we were on cloud nine – and now this. It still doesn’t feel real,” says model and content creator Chyna, 24, who is 13 weeks pregnant, as the couple share these precious photos of the moment Neil went down on one knee.
“I’d already planned to ask Chyna to marry me before we knew she was pregnant. Then we found out and I was like: ‘Oh, this is brilliant, everything is coming together,’” says Neil, 40, who had been secretly planning his holiday proposal while on the Strictly Come Dancing Live Tour earlier this year.
SPECIAL SURPRISE
The unforgettable day began at 5am, with Neil taking Chyna on an early sightseeing trip, joined by photographer Koming Darmawan.
Chyna thought that the couple were doing a photoshoot for HELLO!
to announce her pregnancy, but Koming – the only person who was in on the surprise – helped Neil find the perfect spot to propose.
“We did some shots where Chyna had her back to the camera and then turned around to face me,” Neil recalls. “She kept trying to turn back around quickly. I was like: ‘No, you need to turn slower,’ because I needed time to take the ring out.”
When she did turn to face him – and saw Neil on bended knee, holding a beautiful diamond ring – Chyna was blown away.
“At first, I thought he was joking because we play jokes on each other all the time,” Chyna says. “Then Neil was like: ‘Chyna, so is it a yes or no?’ because a few minutes had passed and he was still on one knee. I was like: ‘Yeah!’”
The surprise proposal was the highlight of a holiday full of memorable activities, including making coconut oil in the jungle, hiking up volcanoes and spending time relaxing in a spa.
Neil’s careful plans had included dropping into a jewellers in Manchester to design the ring, just hours before going on stage in front of thousands of fans.
The former British, European and world champion succeeded in keeping his plans under wraps – but he did confide in TV presenter and Strictly tour co-star
