A couple took the plunge and got engaged during the Loony Dook dip on New Year's Day.

Gordon Fairbairn got down on one knee in a surprise proposal to his partner Kitty Ellison on South Queensferry beach.

"I'm cold and ecstatic!" said Mr Fairbairn, from Edinburgh, who had been waiting for the right moment to pop the question.

Read more: Brave souls take a dip in Forth as part of Loony Dook, in pictures

The 42-year-old said: "I was gonna do it at the bells but thought it would be too cheesy." 

Ms Ellison, 39 from Preston, said she was "shocked, cold and really happy" to be asked .

The Herald: Gordon and Kitty at the Loony Dook in South QueensferryGordon and Kitty at the Loony Dook in South Queensferry (Image: Ginny Sanderson)

The pair, who live south of the border, had just been for a dip in the Firth of Forth along with hundreds of others in the annual event. 

Thousands of people turned out in the town on the outskirts of Edinburgh to take part in or witness the Loony Dook, which is a New Year's Day tradition. 

Spectators lined the pebbly beach and the harbour as dookers decked in fancy dress braved the icy waters at around 2pm, to the sound of bagpipes.

There were people in kayaks and boats in the water to watch the spectacle, which celebrates the arrival of 2024 and is hoped to wash away Hogmanay hangovers. 

Volunteers from the RNLI were on hand to make sure the event went smoothly, with donation buckets raising money for the lifesaving charity. 

Read more: Loony Dook 2024: When it is and 6 alternative events

Though the event started in South Queensferry, the tradition has spread to coastal communities across Scotland

Loony Dooks have been held on Monday (January 1) at Kinghorn in Fife, Helensburgh, Portobello, St Andrews and Dunbar among other locations. 

The name derives from the abbreviation of 'lunatic' and the Scots word for dip or bathe - dook. 

The main Loony Dook in South Queensferry has returned to being organised locally rather than as a part of the official Edinburgh Hogmanay calendar.