It all started in the city where all the greatest stories start: London! Fran came there in 2020 as an ambitious PhD student ready to do something meaningful in the world of biology. Joe moved there two years later as a bright-eyed master’s student with a mission to change the world itself. We both arrived in the UK with a handful of suitcases, all our friends and family left back home, but a dream of building something in this new place that was uniquely our own. And as fate would have it, our dreams would soon become a shared reality.

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Since we were also of an age where our hearts desired companionship and true emotional connection, we decided to meet people the good ol’ fashioned way... by downloading Tinder. Fran reached out first, and after 8 or so messages, we met each other for the first time at The Cocktail Trading Co. in Shoreditch. We talked and talked for hours, and we’ve been inseparable ever since that night.

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Over the past three years, our relationship has been the adventure of a lifetime. We’ve traveled the world, sampled London’s tastiest restaurants, seen the most exciting shows and concerts, and even moved into our first place together. We’ve not only met each other’s family and friends; we’ve each accepted them as our own family and friends.​

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Our engagement started during our trip to Paris when Fran took Joe to a quiet corner of the Gardens of Versailles and dropped down on one knee. Joe of course said, “Of course!”. But little did Fran know that Joe had a proposal of his own planned on a gondola in Venice just one month later! The best part is that we didn’t have to wait too long afterwards to celebrate. On the 14th June 2025, we officially sealed the deal with our Civil Partnership in Shadwell, the neighbourhood where Fran lived when we first met and where we made our earliest memories together.​

 

Now, we are thrilled to celebrate our love story with all of you in the place that we both agree is the real city of love: Madrid!