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A
couple have got engaged on the
Solent’s biggest fort and made
the hotel’s preopening event an
extra special occasion.
No Man’s Fort hosted its
first proposal for Gergo Keleman and
Alexandra Holik, who live in Guildhall
Walk in the centre of Portsmouth.
Gergo, 33, proposed to his girlfriend
after buying the ring almost two months
before. He said: ‘I was planning to take
her to Rome or Barcelona, but I’ve been
following the fort and decided it would be a
special place to go. I had bought tickets to
the evening event so I upgraded them to an
overnight stay.
‘We would like to raise a family soon but
want to get married first so I thought it
would be good to treat her to a night away
and propose. She’s the love of my life.’
Alexandra, 27, didn’t know anything
about the surprise trip or that her
boyfriend was planning to ask her to
marry him.
Gergo said: ‘Alexandra had no idea
where we going or that we were staying
overnight. I told her I was taking her to a
special restaurant for a nice meal but also
said to bring warm clothes as we might be
by the seaside.
‘I packed an overnight bag in secret so
she didn’t know we were staying the night.
When we checked in at the harbour she
thought we were going to Isle of Wight.’
The couple, who have been together
for just over a year, spent the rest of the
evening celebrating their engagement by
dancing and drinking champagne.
Gergo, a general manager at
Portsmouth’s Brewhouse and Kitchen,
said: ‘It’s a really good experience. I like
travelling and have been to a few hotels
but I’ve never seen anything like it. The
hospitality was amazing and all the staff
were really nice. The food was so tasty too.
We enjoyed every part of it.
‘We were given a bottle of champagne on
the house which the manager opened with
a sword, so it was very special.’
The hotel, which hosted an Easter
special evening called Fort Du Soleil, gave
visitors a first glance at the hotel before
the official opening.
Gergo marks fort’s first night
by popping the big questionRomantic couple celebrate their engagement on
new luxury hotel in the middle of the Solent
by CHARLOTTE WINFIELD
The News
Portsmouth community news
COMMUNITY
SHE SAID YES Gergo Keleman and Alexandra Holik, and inset, at the moment of the proposal
COMMUNITY ROUND-UP
Recent participation in
two local music festivals
brought a hat-trick of
trophies for the singers
of Solent Sounds Ladies’
Chorus.
They faced competition
from three other choruses
at the Portsmouth Music
Festival.
Of their first song,
One Moment in Time, the
adjudicator said it was
‘stylish and expressive, sung
with great elegance and a
fine feeling of the beauty of
the piece’.
Take Me to the Land of
Jazz brought a change
of mood and, with it, the
addition of some exciting
choreography to enhance the
song.
It was judged to be ‘full
of energy and surprise’ and
‘very much enjoyed’.
The chorus was
awarded honours for their
performance and a trophy for
first place in the class.
With hardly any time
to get their breath back,
but nicely warmed up, the
chorus’ quartet Chatterbox
sang in the next class. They
gave a spirited performance
of Straighten Up and Fly
Right followed by Zing Went
the Strings of My Heart,
earning themselves honours
from the adjudicator and yet
another piece of silverware.
Southampton Music
Festival was even more
challenging when the main
chorus found themselves
competing against
Chatterbox in the same class.
It was a win-win situation
for the quartet members, for
they would be holding up a
trophy no matter what! And
win they did – by one point!
Della Rawson, the
chorus’s president said:
‘Congratulations to
Chatterbox on another great
result.
‘At this rate, we’ll have to
club together to buy them
some silver polish!’
If you like singing and
would like to take part in
this fun, challenging and
rewarding hobby, why not
go along to one of Solent
Sounds’ rehearsals?
They meet every Tuesday
at the Methodist Church
Hall, King’s Road, Fareham,
PO16 0NU from 7.30pm.
See their website
for further details
solentsoundschorus.org or
call Fiona on 07748 545180.
Titles claimed at
three festivals
It’s a hat-trick for Solent Sounds...
FINE VOICE The singer of Solent Sounds Ladies’ Chorus