Our Story

Emily Hollinshead

Emily lives life at 100mph, always juggling several things at once. She has found the ideal match in Mike—calm, pragmatic and considered in his approach.

Emily was raised and educated in Nantwich, Cheshire with her twin sister Jessie and older brother, Joseph. Never wanting to be outdone by her sister, she adopted a fiercely competitive nature from a young age enabling her to achieve her goals on the pitch and in the classroom.

Michael Sarsfield

Mike was raised and educated in Stockport, Manchester with his younger brother, Andrew.

Also known as the BFG, Mike is respectful & reliable and will eventually get things done. With his financial acumen, head for figures, and his ability to sniff out a bargain—he should have been the chancellor of the Exchequer rather than someone who repairs substations.

From the beginning

  • 23rd June 2018

    It all started when Emily showed up to a mutual friend's pre drinks party in the shortest red dress you could imagine, after downing a bottle of rose and telling her friends that Mike was 'the one' after seeing his facebook profile picture.

  • 24th June 2018

    The night turned into an eventful one, as Emily lost all her belongings in a nightclub in Manchester, including her keys so had no where to stay, so inevitably had to stay at Mike's. In desperate measures, she purposedly left her earrings on Mike's bedside table, in the hope that he would meet her again to give them back. Little did she know, he binned them the following day!

  • 2019 - 2020

    For the following two years, they kept in contact but Mike couldn't commit to a relationship. He continued to show up to Emily's football matches, which prompted their first date - a game of football golf (which he got beat at but blamed his 'sore' leg).

  • 2021

    From then on, they came inseparable and spent a lot of time at Emily's flat in Manchester. After just a year and Emily's rent coming to an end, they decided to look at buying a house.

  • 2021

    Croatia, Emily and Mike’s first holiday together.

  • 2022

    Eventually they got the keys to their first ever house in Cheadle Hulme.

  • 2023

    Then along came the little shadow, Penny the Pug.

  • 2024

    Fast forward a few years; a full renovation, lots of tears, laughter and arguments later, they now have a home they love.

  • 2025

    They have visited 18 countries together in their 5 year relationship and Mike has finally learnt that he can't take over 100ml of liquids abroad with him!

“Mike is the most loyal, chilled-out person I’ve ever met. From the beginning, he made everything feel easy—like no matter what, he was always on my team.” - Emily

“Emily is the only person I know who can fiercely compete on the pitch, plan five holidays at once, and still make everyone around her feel totally at ease. I was smitten from day one.” - Mike

The Proposal

Mike bought the ring in May 2024 and suggested a last minute holiday to Ibiza in August 2024. He attempted the proposal on several occasions during the holiday, but it didn't quite work out.

The orginial plan was to propose on the beautiful island of Formentera. Little did Mike know, once he arrived he would be forced onto a kayak for 2 hours, with the ring in a bag. The kayak ended up tipping, meaning the ring was now floating in the bag in the Mediterranean Ocean.

The next attempt came the next day, during a 3 hour hike in 32 degrees. In front of the famous viewpoint of Es Vedra, Mike got down on one knee and balled his eyes out, whilst his phone came out his pocket and fell down the cliff.

Luckily Emily said yes! The proposal story is very fitting for their relationship, memorable, full of action and adventurous!