Vancouver kissing couple: We are moving to Australia

He was dubbed the ‘Riot Romeo’. Now, romantic hero Scott Jones is bringing his Canadian sweetheart home to Australia.

Not since the ’50s film From Here To Eternity or Rodin’s iconic marble statue The Kiss has a humble pash so captured the world’s imagination. When Perth’s Scott Jones and his girlfriend, Alexandra Thomas, locked lips in the middle of a riot in Canada, they became a YouTube sensation and were dubbed a modern day Romeo and Juliet.

In a world-exclusive, Scott, 29, and Vancouver native Alex, 24, take Woman’s Day back to where that celebrated kiss took place, tell the real story behind the images, and reveal their plans to continue their love story in Australia. “We’d gone to a friend’s apartment to watch the ice hockey championship and had our faces painted in the Vancouver Canucks colours, blue and green,” says Scott, a bartender and aspiring comedian. “When the game was over and our team had lost, I took Alex into town to get a few drinks and drown our sorrows.

“We hadn’t been out long when all of a sudden things started getting out of control [fans began rioting, beating up bystanders and torching cars]. The streets were being shut down by police on horses. Out of nowhere, there were deafening explosions and tear gas. “We were running to get away from it, but the police stood at the end of the street and charged at us – it was insane! I was holding Alex’s hand but she tripped and fell. The police were right behind her so I went back to help her. I just wanted to protect her from it all.”

Alex picks up the story. “They were bashing us down with their shields and I was shouting, ‘Please stop!’ It was a nightmare and I don’t know what I would have done if Scott wasn’t there. I was really freaking out. “I was crying, and when they finally stopped hitting us and pushing us down, Scott had his arms around me and was just trying to calm me down. “That was when he kissed me. It made me feel really safe and I knew that he loved me. I’d never felt in that much danger before, but I wasn’t surprised that he came to my rescue – he is always really caring and considerate.”