A Lancashire woman tricked her partner of four years into going to the top of the Blackpool Tower so she could deliver him a huge 30ft leap year message in the sand.

Louise Forder, 31, proposed to her partner Robert Green in line with the February 29 tradition which sees women ask for their partner's hand in marriage.

Mr Green, 27, who had been told he was helping his future wife take pictures of another couple's proposal, said yes when he saw Marry Me? written in the sand below as they peered down from the glass skywalk.

Miss Forder said that Blackpool Tower had been the "one and only option" for the proposal, with the couple from Poulton-le-Fylde both having connections to the landmark.

Mr Green's great-grandfather John Harry Clegg, who was born in 1890, worked at the Tower his whole life. He started his journey as the lift boy at the age of 10 before moving to an office job and ending his career as the director's secretary.

A marketing executive for Merlin Entertainments, Miss Forder, who has worked at Blackpool Tower for two years, said they often enjoyed trips to the attraction, having met as teenagers.

She said: "Robert and I have always talked about getting engaged when we bought our first house and it feels like fate that this has happened in a leap year of all years.

"Robert has proposed to me in the past but I've always brushed it off as a joke. After his many failed attempts, it was definitely my turn to pop the question.

"The Tower was my one and only option for the location of my proposal, we have so much history with it that I knew it would be extra special for both of our families."

"There's a portrait of John in the hall of his family home, and I think he would have been so pleased we chose to celebrate this special moment here."