IT’S taken a quarter of a century but Ian McDermott has finally popped the question.

The Crosland Moor man got down on one knee to propose to Ann Boltwood, his girlfriend of 25 years.

The couple, who have three children together, will tie the knot at Huddersfield Town Hall next month.

Ian, 40, described how he finally asked Ann, 42, to marry him.

“We had eight or nine friends round a few weeks ago for some drinks,” he said.

“I popped the question and she said yes. She was a little bit shocked and she asked me again the next morning to see if it was real.”

The couple’s friends were also shocked.

“We’ve been together 25 years and no-one ever believed we would get married,” said Ian.

“They said they’re not going to buy their wedding outfits until the last moment, but it’s definitely going ahead.”

The couple got together in Fartown in 1987 when Ann was pregnant with her first child Laura.

They went on to have three children together: Sally, 21, Kylie, 19 and 10-year-old Joe.

However, the couple have never shared a house. Ian lives on William Street in Crosland Moor and Ann lives on nearby Moorside Avenue.

Ian said: “It’s a bit weird that we’ve never lived together but it’s worked for us.

“After we get married, our intention is to live together and have a normal family life.”

Ian believes recent changes in the family prompted him to finally pop the question.

He said: “I’ve been a bit poorly and Ann just had her first grandchild last week when Laura gave birth to her daughter, Brooke.”

The couple will get married at Huddersfield Town Hall on June 2. Laura, Kylie and Sally will be bridesmaids while Joe will be a page boy.

IN THE 80s

Ian and Ann got together in 1987, the year that:

Church of England envoy Terry Waite was taken hostage in Beirut.

Margaret Thatcher won her third general election.

Nearly 200 people died when the Herald of Free Enterprise capsized off the coast of the Belgian port of Zeebrugge.

Star Trek: The Next Generation, starring Mirfield’s Patrick Stewart, debuted on US TV.

Chart-toppers included Rick Astley with Never Gonna Give You Up; Mel and Kim with Respectable and the Pet Shop Boys with It’s a Sin.