Drone footage captures Northampton man’s marriage proposal on motorhome minibreak

After filming Channel Five’s Million Pound Motorhomes, adventure-loving cameraman Tim Benson knew a motorhome holiday would be the perfect setting to stage his marriage proposal to his now fiancée, Becky Clayton.

Tim, 31, from Abington, worked on the Channel Five show last year, spending over a week with Trudi and Adam Lilley, founders of Leicestershire luxury motorhome hire company, Hey Campers. Inspiration for his own proposal struck when building a relationship with the husband-and-wife duo and seeing how the busy showroom operates.

Tim said: “I had a really good time filming with Trudi and Adam – they are lovely people, and their passion for motorhoming is infectious. It seemed like such a fun thing to do, to hit the open road in one of their vehicles – and to throw a marriage proposal into the mix too.

“Since we’ve been together, Becky and I love to spend time walking and visiting new places and although we’ve camped together in a campervan in the past, we’d never been away in a motorhome. When I started planning how I might propose, it just felt like the right fit for us as a couple.”

Tim met Becky, 29, more than six years ago when they both worked on the set of popular children’s TV channel CBBC. They became a couple just six months later.

Tim is a freelance camera operator while Becky works in the BBC’s User Experience (UX) Department.

After letting friends and family in on the plans and making sure everything would be perfect for the occasion, the couple collected Oakley – a popular four-berth vehicle with island bed, from the Hey Campers showroom in Coalville. They then headed north for a whistlestop tour of Yorkshire, Northumberland and the Borders.

The couple visited The Holy Island of Lindisfarne, Berwick, Castle Horward and Alnwick during the long weekend staycation and Tim chose the picturesque coastal town of Alnmouth in Northumberland to get down on one knee.

Tim managed to capture the whole proposal on film, thanks to his drone, which he used to distract Becky as he prepared himself.

Tim says: “We were taking a walk over a high coastal path in Alnmouth and I said to Becky that it would make great footage, so I sent the drone up.

“As I prepared to take the ring out of my bag for the proposal, I asked her to hold the drone controls so I could get another battery. When she turned around, I was in position. Thankfully, she said yes.”

The happy couple expect their wedding will be held in Northamptonshire in spring 2023. They have however already made plans for their next motorhome holiday, this time taking friends along for a trip in August.

Tim concludes: “The whole motorhoming experience from start to finish was great. The vehicle was so easy to drive, it had everything we needed and it was so much more roomy and luxurious than our previous camping trips.”

Hey Campers has 14 motorhomes and one campervan available to hire in addition to getaways including a three-night luxury motorhome hire, camping pitch with electric book-up, dinner for two, two bikes and more.

For more information visit www.heycampers.co.uk.

Watch the drone footage of Tim’s proposal here.