THE next two weeks could prove to be the most romantic of the year with the first Valentine's Day of the new millennium followed by February 29 - the day women are traditionally allowed to propose. But, as we move from love in the nineties to embrace a new century of 'noughties' do women really need to wait the four years between leap years before they can pop the question to that all-important man? And in this new age of e-mails, virtual Valentine cards and internet chat rooms where people propose before they've even met, is there still a place in our hearts for the traditional love tokens of old? Reporter SHELLEY WRIGHT found out.

VALENTINE'S Day and leap years will always hold a special place in Karen Whittaker's heart.

For it took the former Karen Turner seven years of marriage proposals on February 14 and a further two February 29ths to prise long-standing boyfriend Derek off the sofa and down the aisle.

Persistence finally paid off for the 36-year-old mother of two when the couple, of Blackburn Road, Darwen, finally said they would in October 1998 - but did she really have to wait that long?

"I cried getting married because it was always at the back of my mind that it would never happen," she can now laugh.

"I'd proposed to Derek almost every Valentine's Day since we met in 1989 and he would always say 'yes' at the time because he had had a few drinks.

"But, the next day, he would pretend it hadn't happened. It went on like that for years."

The couple eventually set the date after Karen turned to the Lancashire Evening Telegraph for help with her reluctant Romeo. Derek, 35, said 'yes' when he read our leap year feature in February 1996, seven years and as many proposals after they met.

Karen, was pregnant with the couple's second child Courtney, now three, at the time and already lived with Derek and their daughter Kelsey, eight.

She believes in direct action - and that East Lancashire women should propose whenever they want if they think they've got their man.

"It isn't even the nineties now is it?" she said.

"We're past that and I think that women should just go for it. In fact, I think everybody should.

"People have to go forward or they will get left behind and if you see someone you want, go for it. That's my advice."

But it seems the ancient traditions of Valentine's Day are still going strong in the hearts of thousands of East Lancashire people who send cards, flowers and gifts to show their love each year and, judging by the leap year hysteria, women are still waiting those four long years to propose.

The celebration apparently dates back to 207AD when Roman Emperor Claudius II forbade his soldiers to marry in case they scuppered campaigns because they were pining for their wives.

The story goes that a Christian priest named Valentinus defied the order by conducting secret ceremonies but was thrown into prison when the emperor found out.

There Valentinus fell for the jailer's daughter and sent her a farewell note on the eve of his execution on February 14. The tradition was officially born in England in 1537 when Henry VIII ordered a Royal Charter establishing the date as St Valentine's Day.

According to UK's largest greetings card company Hallmark, a staggering £39million was spent on sending 23million Valentines last year.

And that's not counting those individual love tokens, like the £180,000 solid gold, diamond and emerald studded card once sent by Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis.

Then there were the personal messages like that from a microbiology student who grew 500,000million bacteria to spell 'I love you' to his wife and the farmer who spelled out the same in horse manure in a field.

It seems that, despite the age of new technology, traditional greetings with a personal or innovative touch still get the thumbs up, with most people shunning telephone calls or e-mails on Valentine's Day.

And forget cyber dates or internet chatrooms if you're looking for love. East Lancashire's supermarkets are the places to be - though according to Morrison's, which has stores in Blackburn and Nelson, it's the checkout girls who are most likely to find themselves being asked for a date.

Apparently, aisle-roaming Romeos stock up on love groceries like after-shave, champagne and oysters before queuing for up to 20 minutes extra to be served by the checkout girls of their dreams.

Meanwhile, at Asda, which has stores in Blackburn, Rawtenstall, Colne and Accrington, staff have been handing out stickers of famous couples to shoppers taking part in singles nights before Tannoying for Robin Hood and Maid Marion or Posh and Becks to be paired up.

Love is also in the air at many East Lancashire bars and especially at Burnley's Yates's Wine Lodge where staff are planning to spray pheromones - dubbed nature's love drug - into the atmosphere in a bid to get customers in the mood for love. And, not to be outdone in the love stakes, nearby Burnley Mechanics has organised a romantic quiz and game of Valentine's Twister.

But if it all sounds excruciatingly embarrassing you could find your Valentine through an internet dating agency like Club Sirius at www.clubsirius.com, which allows members to browse through suitors on-line in the privacy of their own home.

And, despite being given the thumbs down for being impersonal where messages of love are concerned, the net can help find somewhere special to go or that unusual gift, with sites like FiredUp.com offering deals on holidays and celebrity memorabilia.

According to research by building society Abbey National, holidays are the first choice for women when it comes to Valentine's presents, with flowers, jewellery and eating out also in the top five.

In the same survey, men would like a new motorbike or car, a foreign holiday or DVD player, thank you very much, or how about a season ticket to watch his favourite football team?

"It is nice to do something because it is nice to remember in years to come," said Karen.

"Though I think people should show their feelings at any time of year, I do think people should make it special too.

"I have a story to tell and I have kept the paper for the future. I reckon it's someone else's turn this year."

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