The Big Bang Theory gives us the moment we've all been waiting for

We've had the wedding of Howard and Bernadette and the first snog between Sheldon and Amy but what's the one moment you've wanted to happen on The Big Bang Theory for years? (And we really do mean YEARS. Seven, to be precise.)

Well, it's happened. Penny and Leonard are, finally, headed down the aisle.

Airing last night in the States, the penultimate episode of the current seventh series saw Leonard (played by Johnny Galecki) and Penny (Kaley Cuoco) take their on-off romance up a notch when the scientist and aspiring actress got engaged in the closing moments.

Titled The Gorilla Dissolution, the episode saw Penny get fired from her job playing a bisexual go-go dancer transforming into a killer gorilla (see above) – a development that led her to ponder what was really important to her... Leonard.

"Getting fired from that movie was the best thing that could have happened to me," she tells him. "I finally realised that I don't need to be famous or have some big career to be happy."

It takes him a while to catch on – "Then, what do you need?" – but her reply ("You, you stupid pop tart") leaves him in no doubt and the pair soon realise they've become engaged.

But, because seven years of waiting demands a bigger climax than that, there was an extra sweet moment to satisfy viewers as Leonard pulled an engagement ring from his wallet and got down on one knee, telling Penny he'd been carrying it with him for the last couple of years.

"Penny, will you marry me?" he asks. "Oh my god, yes!" is her reply. Hurrah!

The seventh series concludes in America next week (fear not, the show has already been renewed for a further three seasons) but UK fans eager to see the long-awaited proposal will have to wait an extra couple of months until The Gorilla Dissolution airs on E4 later this summer.

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