A SWANSEA nurse won a beauty queen title - and then fell for the judge who crowned her.
Brunette Samantha Hawkins, 23, met up to thank judge Mark Tancock for picking her as her town's top beauty.
And now the couple plan to marry after love blossomed following the beauty pageant where Samantha was crowned at a Miss Wales regional final.
Mark, 29, awarded Samantha the Miss Merthyr Tydfil title - and then asked for her telephone number.
Their "Gavin and Stacey-style" romance grew even though the couple lived 200 miles apart with Samantha in Wales and Mark in London.
And Samantha will never forget the moment Mark proposed to her as they overlooked the sea at the French Riviera resort of St Tropez.
Business manager Mark, 29, said: "It was a fantastic night for both of us.
"I knew there would be good looking girls at the Miss Wales competition.
"But when I saw Samantha she was so much more than pretty. She was so easy to talk to and we just clicked.
"Her personality just shone and we were so natural in each others company. We swapped numbers and it went from there."
The couple were engaged after Samantha graduated as a nurse and bought a cosy love nest in Swansea.
Sam said: "We swapped numbers even though I lived in Swansea and he lived in London.
"Mark is so caring and gave me the most amazing proposal. We went to St Tropez and at sunset he proposed on the rocks overlooking the sea.
"Our friends and family often say we're the best looking couple in Wales and we both have sashes to prove it!"
Mark was a judge in the competition because he is a former winner of the Mr Wales personality competition.
Samantha said: "Not only did I win a beauty pageant that day but I bagged a trophy husband too."
