AN ACTOR proposed to his girlfriend onstage after performing in a play in the venue where they first met.

Matt Orillard, from Birchwood, played Harry in the Centenary Theatre Company’s production of the Ladykillers before popping the question to partner Danielle Segar on the stage of the Brindley in Runcorn.

The couple first met treading the boards of the Brindley for musical Seven Brides for Seven Brothers four years ago.

On Thursday, September 14, Danielle, 26, and Matt, 25, got engaged in front of their Centenary ‘family’ following the play.

Matt said: “She wasn’t suspecting anything and she didn’t think for a second that this was going to happen – she said her stomach dropped.

“I had people running around for me before, during and after the show just to make sure everything was set, and I think I messed up my lines about two or three times because my mind was on other things.

“To be surrounded by our Centenary family was a really nice moment.

“We met in the Centenary’s autumn play four years ago at the very first rehearsal – I’d been performing here for about three years and she was re-joining after university.

“The friendship went from there and as the weeks went on it became clear that she was someone I’d like to begin a relationship with.

“She said that it was a dream to be proposed to in front of the same people we performed with on the Brindley stage, with it being so special to us.”

Matt and Danielle are now planning on getting married six years on from the day they first got together in summer 2019.

Danielle, from Penketh, added: “It was absolutely perfect, although I had always told him not to do it in public.

“It was a complete surprise to me, although I did have a bit of a suspicion that something was going on a few days beforehand when he was very insistent that I had to go and watch the show on that particular night.

“We were both shaking – he was trembling and I was absolutely blown away.

“I have no idea how he actually managed to do the show knowing that he was going to do that at the end, but it was a fantastic show and it was very funny.

“It was really special and I feel very lucky.”