IT is a time-honoured tradition for a prospective groom to ask the permission of the father of his bride before proposing. But it must be slightly more intimidating when her dad is superstar singer Chris de Burgh – and his daughter is former Miss World Rosanna Davison. But Wesley Quirke stuck to the proper etiquette by asking Chris’s permission for his daughter’s hand in marriage.
“Wes asked dad a few days ago but I had no idea, they were able to keep it a secret. I’m so happy and excited about the future. I couldn’t imagine a better start to 2013,” Davison told the Irish Independent. The model made the announcement from the island of Mauritius where the couple are with her family on holiday. The 28-year-old revealed the background to the proposal. “Wes and I went for a walk on the beach when he suddenly got down on one knee and proposed. I was so shocked but happy that we were able to celebrate with my whole family,” she revealed. Quirke was brandishing a diamond engagement ring from Voltaire Diamonds on St Stephen’s Green. “Wes designed the ring and we made it for him. It’s a cushion cut diamond engagement ring with diamond-set shoulders. He was in just before Christmas to pick it up,” Seamus Fahy of Voltaire Diamonds told the Irish Independent.
Party
“We won’t be getting married until next year. We haven’t made any wedding arrangements, we’re just looking forward to a good engagement party,” said Davison. Having made headlines posing for the German edition of ‘Playboy’, the 28-year-old said she had “no plans” to do any more topless shoots after revealing last October she would not have considered this type of modelling work if she was engaged or married. Quirke (28), son of millionaire arcade tycoon Richard Quirke, has admitted he found it hard to deal with the media attention the high-profile relationship brought him. “I wasn’t looking for that, but I met Rosanna and that was that. I’ve gotten used to it now,” he said. Davison has said previously that she doesn’t envisage her big day to be a traditional affair. “I’ve spent years modelling wedding dresses so that idea of stepping into your dress for the first time is kind of gone. I might marry on a beach in a bikini,” she said. – Ken Sweeney Entertainment Editor
