A million hearts broke this morning when news began filtering through that Orlando Bloom had secretly wed his model girlfriend Miranda Kerr in a secret ceremony.

The couple, who announced their engagement last month were forced to confirm their wedding rumour after news leaked out that Miranda pulled out of an appearance at Australian department store, David Jones, this week.

She said in a statement: "David Jones very graciously released me during this period so we could celebrate an intimate ceremony and honeymoon together."

However, they aren't the only couple who have shied away from the press and surprised us with sudden engagements and marriages.

One engagement, which caught us totally off-guard was the one between Twilight star Jamie Campbell Bower and Harry Potter starlet Bonnie Wright who announced their whirlwind engagement in the spring. And last month Megan Fox surprised everyone when she announced that she had finally tied the knot with her long term fiance Brian Austin Green in Hawaii. She didn't release any wedding details, but it surprised the media at the time as it was thought the couple had split.

Another couple who shunned Hollywood was Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem who fled to the Bahamas for a quiet intimate wedding. Penelope wore John Galliano but we're not sure if she invited her best friend Salma Hayek.

And even Katie Price and Alex Reid took some time out from the public eye (although at the time she was being filmed by ITV2) when they shloped off quietly to Vegas to tie the knot. However, their church blessing and UK party was anything but quiet. A media circus entailed and this time around Katie wore a white handmade dress with crystals, which was just as big as the pink frock she chose to wed Peter Andre.

Although it wasn't a surprise wedding, Piers Morgan opted for privacy when he wed his long term partner Celia Walden in Oxford. However, like Katie and Alex, the couple made it up to friends when they had a huge party to celebrate their vows a month later.

View the gallery below to see all the lucky couples.

A million hearts broke this morning when news began filtering through that Orlando Bloom had secretly wed his model girlfriend Miranda Kerr in a secret ceremony.

The couple, who announced their engagement last month were forced to confirm their wedding rumour after news leaked out that Miranda pulled out of an appearance at Australian department store, David Jones, this week.

She said in a statement: "David Jones very graciously released me during this period so we could celebrate an intimate ceremony and honeymoon together."

However, they aren't the only couple who have shied away from the press and surprised us with sudden engagements and marriages.

One engagement, which caught us totally off-guard was the one between Twilight star Jamie Campbell Bower and Harry Potter starlet Bonnie Wright who announced their whirlwind engagement in the spring. And last month Megan Fox surprised everyone when she announced that she had finally tied the knot with her long term fiance Brian Austin Green in Hawaii. She didn't release any wedding details, but it surprised the media at the time as it was thought the couple had split.

Another couple who shunned Hollywood was Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem who fled to the Bahamas for a quiet intimate wedding. Penelope wore John Galliano but we're not sure if she invited her best friend Salma Hayek.

And even Katie Price and Alex Reid took some time out from the public eye (although at the time she was being filmed by ITV2) when they shloped off quietly to Vegas to tie the knot. However, their church blessing and UK party was anything but quiet. A media circus entailed and this time around Katie wore a white handmade dress with crystals, which was just as big as the pink frock she chose to wed Peter Andre.

Although it wasn't a surprise wedding, Piers Morgan opted for privacy when he wed his long term partner Celia Walden in Oxford. However, like Katie and Alex, the couple made it up to friends when they had a huge party to celebrate their vows a month later.

View the gallery below to see all the lucky couples.

It seems that companies are waking up to the fact that we're in a midst of credit crunch and that we have to tighten our corsets when it comes to our bridal budget.

Following on from our news about a designer shoe hiring service, we've just been told about the UK's first diamond jewellery rental website.

Diamondthrills is aimed at women who want to wear that expensive piece of jewellery for a special occasion but can't afford it, especially brides who want to be adorned with genuine diamonds on their wedding day (unfortunately we're not talking about the engagement ring here.)

It offers a range of diamond earrings, pendants, necklaces, bangles, bracelets and tiaras, all available for hire at prices that start at £50 per week.

In addition, you'll also have the peace of mind of knowing that loaned jewellery is insured whilst in their possession, and delivery to and from the customer is secure and free.

Visit the website now for that extra bridal bling.

If you're a green goddess whose boyfriend has proposed without a ring, then you'll love these engagement rings by Cred Jewellery.

The jeweller has designed a range of eco friendly engagement rings, which are certified as socially and environmentally responsible.

All the engagement rings in the range are made of platinum and 18ct fair trade gold sourced by Oro Verde, a supplier of ethically sourced precious metals. CRED also says its gold is produced without mercury or cyanide and their precious stones are traceable from mine to retail.

We've had a look at some of their rings, and they are ethically gorgeous, especially the 18ct white gold Princess ring (pictured).

The range doesn't come cheap with prices starting at £1,010, but at least you can tell your other half its for the good of the environment.

We couldn't have planned this announcement for a better time considering our new wag wedding series. This time it's a true wag style engagement party.

Tottenham Hotspur and England midfielder Jermaine Jenas hosted an extravagant ceremony to celebrate his engagement to fiancee Ellie Penfold.

The 25-year-old football star invited his Tottenham team-mates to the party in London, which included an appearance by rapper Nelly, 34, who serenaded the couple with his singing.

With an engagement as extravagant as this, we dread to see the wedding but we'll have to wait a good few years as the couple say they are not planning to wed until 2011.

If your struggling to find an engagement/wedding ring with a little bit of a difference, then you may be pleased to hear about these new designs by Kimberley Selwood.

The British designer has come up with a range of creations that will help your ring stand out in a crowd, especially if your other friends have decided to get married/engaged at around the same time as you.

We love the bespoke trilogy diamond wedding and engagement set (pictured), which has a beautiful platinum ring, with three diamonds. Underneath it sits a band with tiny diamonds.

Brides that want something that little bit more special can also ask this lovely designer to help them create their own ring including selecting your diamonds or gemstones and setting.

And to the ladies out there who are waiting in anticipation for that special question, we suggest you leave the website open for him when he gets home (yes I will be guilty of doing this). After all we're only showing him what it is we like.

For many people, being engaged is more important than actually getting married. It shoes a certain amount of willing from both partners, costs nothing, doesn't involve any fancy clothing and shuts people up when they ask about when he's going to 'pop the question'. And for some, the arrangement never goes beyond that.

A campaign by Scottish tipple Glavya is currently searching for the couple with the most long-standing engagement in the UK, in a bid to give them the final nudge needed to propell them down the aisle. If you think you might qualify, email them at glayva@dada.co.uk and tell them how long you've been 'putting it off'. And if you're revealed to be the nationa's longest-affianced couple, they'll reward you with some free drinks at your reception. Marvelous!

In the meantime, I want to know how long you're planning your engagement period to last. Vote in the box below:

Geeks sometimes have a hard time communicating their feelings, and what could be scarier for the socially awkward than proposing marriage?

Lucky for them, the internet is here to save the day. I've seen some guys resort to popping the question on YouTube (hard to get out of that one once it's gone viral!) and have heard tales of Twitter proposals, too. But an even whackier solution is to adopt the current vernacular of 'lolcats' and say it with an image macro - just like this one. For the uninitiated, the charming sentiment expressed in the image can be roughly translated as 'Dear Loretta. I would be honoured to take your hand in marriage - John. Look, here's the ring (I'm sorry it isn't a mouse).

Related: An indecent (pottery) proposal | Would you broadcast your proposal on YouTube?

It can't have escaped your notice that it was Valentine's Day over the weekend - and I'm guessing that there's a whole host of new brides to be out there! Tell us what happened in the poll below, and I'd love to know all about your romantic (or not!) proposals in the comments section.

Congratulations!

Here's one for our lovely US readers. Martha Stewart Weddings have unveiled 'Perfect Proposals' an online contest searching for the most inventive and creative wedding proposals. The magazine's editors will choose their favourite stories for a photo gallery online where their story will be accompanied by the couples' photo.

Winners will receive a six-day, five-night Disney's Fairy Tale Honeymoons vacation including a night at the Cinderella Castle Suite at Walt Disney World® Resort in Florida plus round trip airfare for two, two six-day Magic Your Way tickets and a $1,000 gift card from Disney's Honeymoon Registry. Runners up will get a Disney prize. Winners are to be announced in June and the competition is open until April 15th (my birthday!).

Click here to read more at Martha Stewart Weddings.

There aren't any rules that say it has to be a diamond on your engagement finger. Be totally original with a dramatic oval cut sapphire surrounded with rose cut diamonds on an 18k gold ring. Designed by Rajiv Arora, it even has an eco element with the diamonds recycled from Indian jewellery. The ring is £780 at Kabiri.

Related: JudeFrances launch bridal jewellery collection I Does recession cause a surge of engagements? I More rings and jewellery

Getting down on one knee may be time-honoured, traditional and genteel, but let's face it - it's also predictable as hell and shows no imagination. Some may even find the experience distinctly embarrassing, whether they're the kneel-er or the kneel-ee!

That's why I was so charmed by this 'proposition plate', made by blogger Ariel Meadow Stallings. Not only did she make the still-rare move of proposing to her boyfriend, she did so by giving him this plate she'd made and decorated herself.

And this got me wondering about the potential for other 'non-traditional' proposals; something I rarely hear about despite being surrounded by married couples. So what I'd like to know is if you had an 'unconventional' proposal, what happened? Were you or your partner confused, surprised, delighted or a combination of all three?

Well, research released today certainly seems to think so. The credit crunch is behind a unexpected flurry of weddings in 2009 revealed a survey from Star Jewellers of Hatton Garden. Backing up the research is data from the Office for National Statistics which has found the national marriage rate actually increases around periods of recession with the biggest surge being during 1940, with 470,549 marriages recorded, which coincided with the early days of WWII and the depression.

As people are staying at home more, the survey finds, "couples are spending more time together and relationships are developing more quickly, accelerating to the point of engagement." Lets hope for a set of wonderful 2009 weddings then!

Related: More engagement ideas here

For a unique way to say I do, check out these rings ranging from affordable to downright cheap.

Perhaps meant as a novelty, this felt ring, $28, would satisfy new and blue requirements on the way to the chapel (or justice of the peace, as this seems perfect for a quickie wedding). Soft and sustainable, the ring becomes three dimensional when slotted together. After all, who doesn't want an engagement ring with simple assembly required?

The season of goodwill (or season of shopping queues and cold feet, if you prefer) is one of the times of year when proposals come thick and fast. If you're in New York, you might want to take advantage of the Rockefeller Center's Engagements on Ice package.

The world famous skating rink will offer a proposal to remember with front-of-line access with skate rental, a moment alone on the ice with 'your song' and if you say yes, a bouquet (dropped off by the proposer) 'victory lap' and then a glass of champagne all for $250.

Related: More engagement ideas