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Kiwi fiancé of London Pride proposal says publicity from viral video is a way to help others on their journey

The officer, who got down on one knee during the parade, has opened up on why the festival continues to be so important.
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Jonathan Sammons, the man at the heart of last year’s spontaneous proposal by a British police officer, says worldwide reactions to the now-viral video have given his partner a platform to speak out on gay rights.

Last year cameras captured the moving moment when police officer Phil Adlem, marching with a group of 100 Metropolitan Police, broke formation to pop the question to his New Zealand-born partner.

The video, which has since been viewed millions of times on YouTube, was met with an outpouring of support, Adlem recently wrote in an opinion piece for the Guardian.

But, he also says he was also shocked by vitriolic and homophobic comments left by some after they’d watched the clip.

Ab Fab’s Edina and Patsy were in attendance at last year’s London Pride parade. Photo: Getty Images

On top of that, the British Bobby says he faced a backlash from those around him, making him “wish I’d never done it”.

“A further hostile reaction at work from one of my colleagues and another from an old college friend was enough for me to wish I had never done it. I had requests for interviews but I rejected all of them. In hindsight, I was letting other people’s opinions dictate my actions.”

Adlem also spoke about having himself been a victim of a hate crime, revealing he’d been brutally beaten in an attack by three men when he was 18-years-old.

“Pride is an invaluable source of positivity and strength for anyone who has experienced abuse or bullying,” Adlem says.

Phil Adlem, left, and Jonathan Sammons. Photo: Facebook

His Kiwi fiancé Jonathan Sammons told the Herald On Sunday that in the wake of the video’s popularity, Adlem had used his new-found recognition as a way to reach out and share a message of hope.

“Phil turned down all media and attention, instead he started to volunteer for an anti-bullying charity delivering talks to schools in London. It made us want to do something worthwhile and positive with the exposure,” he said.

Sammons says the couple plan to marry in October and are investigating surrogacy options with the hopes of starting a family next year.

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