OUR couple are preparing to walk down the aisle in March may look familiar to some readers.

Great Sankey couple Zoe Knowles, aged 35, and Dave Richardson, aged 35, got engaged during a live television satellite link while Dave was serving in Afghanistan last Christmas.

The pair met through social networking site Facebook in May 2008 after both attending Penketh High School.

Zoe said: “Dave played football with my brother Martin and he was in a list of ‘suggested friends’.

“I didn’t remember him at all from school but Dave said he always fancied me.

“We started messaging each other and arranged our first date in Stockton Heath.

“We were supposed to go for food but we just started chatting and it got past the point of eating!”

Zoe, who is a recently qualified chartered psychologist, has had her hands full planning an army wedding at St Elphins Church with her two daughters Anya, aged five and Caitlin, aged four, and Dave’s daughter Katie, aged seven, from a previous marriage.

Zoe said: “When we told the girls Caitlin thought she was going to be a mermaid rather than a bridesmaid!

“In the nicest possible way the army tells you when you get married because it depends on the calendar of events.”

Picking a date that would allow distinguished guests to attend the wedding has been one of the main concerns.

Zoe added: “The Sergeant Major is booked into a hotel now.

“There will be a big contingent coming from the London barracks where Dave is based so we’ll be serving Lancashire hot pot so the southerners can try some proper northern food!”

Zoe said she is most looking forward to getting dressed up on the big day.

She added: “The guests we have invited all mean alot to us and supported us as a family during challenging times while Dave was away so I’m looking forward to sharing our joy with them.”