Whether they lived happily ever after or not, the list of couples who won filmgoers and TV viewers' hearts is a long one. We at M magazine offer a selection of our favourites, where great actors oozed chemistry on screen and served up some of the best scenes ever seen.
Dev Patel and Freida Pinto
Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
All relationships should be as intense and passionate as that between Patel and Pinto, who met on the set of this Oscar-winning film and remain a happy couple to this day. Their onscreen rapport is apparent, and undoubtedly mirrors what occurred offscreen, as their early bond of friendship grows into beautiful young love, despite all the hardships and craziness in the slums of Mumbai. The heartfelt last scene at the train station gives me goose bumps.
Tina Chang, photographer
Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle
Pride and Prejudice (TV miniseries, 1995)
"From the first moment I met you, your arrogance and conceit, your selfish disdain for the feelings of others made me realise that you were the last man in the world I could ever be prevailed upon to marry." Thus spits feisty Elizabeth Bennet (Ehle) to the haughty and brooding Mr Darcy (Firth). Of course, not for a moment do we think that these two are not meant to be together. The BBC's gripping adaptation of Jane Austen's satirical comedy of manners brilliantly portrays the tension, the awkward silences and the slow-burning magnetism between the two characters. It's an unforgettable romance that set our hearts racing, just as the wet shirt scene, the bushy sideburns, the riding breeches and the smouldering good looks sealed Firth in our imaginations forever.
Jemma Nicholls, senior editor
Omar Sharif and Julie Christie
Doctor Zhivago (1965)
Was there ever a more beautiful and tragic heroine than the lovely Lara, played by Christie? Just the name conjures up her vulnerability and sensuality. And Sharif's dashing Yuri Zhivago is a perfect foil. All we ever want is for them to be together, unencumbered by the pesky revolution and the even peskier wife. But this being a classic love story, of course, it's never going to happen - although you can't help but wonder what might have been if Lara had been on the tram instead of walking, tantalisingly out of reach, alongside it. The film, which was nominated for 10 Academy Awards and won five, is a classic.
Helena Frith Powell, editor
Viggo Mortensen and Liv Tyler
The Lord of the Rings (2001-2003)
The Fellowship is broken and Middle-Earth is on the brink of darkness, but the love of the elf maiden Arwen (Tyler) serves as a beacon of hope for Ranger Aragorn (Mortensen). In his moments of hopelessness and self-doubt, it is the memory of Arwen that uplifts his spirit. It is easy for their story to get lost amid the battles and the quest to reach Mount Doom, but the few scenes they have together emphasise their faith and their love. "I would rather share one lifetime with you than face all ages of this world alone," Arwen vows to Aragorn. Seeing their smouldering kiss at the end of the trilogy fills my heart and makes me sigh.
Olive Obina, photo researcher
Ryan O'Neal and Ali McGraw
Love Story (1970)
Yes, this tearjerker was silly, cloying and formulaic, and its catchphrase - "Love means never having to say you're sorry" - was the stupidest in the history of motion pictures. But who could resist the coltish, beautiful and insouciant McGraw as the doomed music teacher and the manly, huggable and teddy bearish-O'Neal as the Harvard jock? Their chemistry set the screen on fire, and O'Neal revealed on The Oprah Winfrey Show 40 years later that he had a devastating crush on his co-star. "I just adored her. I walked into walls," he said.
Rick Arthur, deputy editor
Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová
Once (2006)
Known in the film only as "Guy" and "Girl", Hansard and Irglová's characters meet for a brief period in their lives, but form an intense relationship stemming from their common passion for music. We watch as they complement and enable each other to produce a chillingly beautiful musical demo (one that actually earned them an Oscar for Best Original Song in 2007 for Falling Slowly). The film is magical, and although they part ways at the end, not surprisingly the couple took their romance off-screen for several years and toured as the folk-rock duo The Swell Season.
Kerri Abrams, art director
Walter Matthau and Glenda Jackson
House Calls (1978)
Dr Charley Nichols (Matthau), a merry widower making the most of his new-found freedom, meets his match in Ann Atkinson (Jackson), a hospital receptionist, who, having got rid of a philandering husband, is determined not to make the same mistake again. The film is a knockabout comedy reminiscent of the "screwball" classics of the 1930s, featuring a harmony of opposites between the brash American and the cool Englishwoman, with wit, wisdom and one-liners in abundance.
Kevin McIndoe, page editor
Albert Finney and Jessica Lange
Big Fish (2003)
While Big Fish is primarily a story of a father-son relationship, it's one of those films that sticks with you as a classic romance because, despite the character Edward's tall tales and wild exaggerations, there is a truthfulness that resonates with all of us who have fallen in love. The chemistry of Edward (Finney) and Sandra (Lange) reflects their partnership, respect and utter adoration. The scene in which they embrace in the bathtub is a beautiful depiction of their enduring love. Best of all, the stories Edward shares with his estranged son add flavour to the long-term romance, and shed light on the personal reality of the man his son never really knew.
Ellen Fortini, page editor
Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman
Moulin Rouge (2001)
Christian (McGregor), a young and struggling bohemian writer, falls madly in love with Satine (Kidman), a courtesan, the most desired of all, in this beautiful movie musical set in Paris in 1899. It's one to watch again and again. "Come what may. Come what may. I will love you until my dying day," Christian professes. Sadly, their love is cut short and he is left penning his own story after Satine's tragic death.
Wai-Ling Chung, picture editor
Jeremy Leary and Elie Docter (voicing Carl and Ellie)
Up (2009)
I watched Up on a flight back from London two years ago, already teary-eyed from saying goodbye to friends. As soon as I saw the square-faced characters on screen, my spirits instantly lifted. Then, seeing the innocent connection between Carl (Leary) and Ellie (Docter) as children blossoming into marriage made me weep with joy. Yes! Those two cartoon characters' love for one another made me "that" person - the one who cries on planes, in public and loudly at that. Their love was almost too mature for a children's film but the simplicity of the relationship is what touched me the most.
Nadia El Dasher, stylist
Bud Cort and Ruth Gordon
Harold and Maude (1971)
Dame Marjorie "Maude" Chardin (Gordon), a 79-year-old free spirit who wears her heart on her sleeve and her hair twisted across her forehead like two freshly baked loaves, lives life to the fullest. When she meets Harold Chasen (Cort), a bored young man in his 20s who has a strange fascination with his own mortality, his life changes forever. Much to the befuddlement of Harold's psychiatrist, and to the obvious disappointment of his painfully bourgeois mother, a poignant love story unfolds between the hopeless pair. Doggedly eccentric, Maude teaches Harold how to make the most out of life, all played out alongside the lilting Cat Stevens soundtrack. The whole thing hurts (in a good way) from start to finish - perhaps in just the same way that love does.
Katie Trotter, fashion director
Other film couples we just love
Woody Allen and Diane Keaton
Annie Hall (1977) and Manhattan (1979)
Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malini
Baghban (2003)
Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway
Bonnie and Clyde (1967)
Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman
Casablanca (1942)
Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor
Cleopatra (1963)
Nicolas Cage and Cher
Moonstruck (1987)
Sean Connery and Audrey Hepburn
Robin and Marian (1976)
Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly
High Noon (1952)
Kevin Costner and Susan Sarandon
Bull Durham (1988)
Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan
When Harry Met Sally... (1989)
Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet
Titanic (1997)
Clint Eastwood and Clyde the orangutan
Every Which Way But Loose (1978)
Joseph Fiennes and Gwyneth Paltrow
Shakespeare in Love (1998)
Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh
Gone with the Wind (1939)
John Garfield and Lana Turner
The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946)
Judy Garland and Toto
The Wizard of Oz (1939)
Richard Gere and Julia Roberts
Pretty Woman (1990)
Ryan Gosling and Carey Mulligan
Drive (2011)
Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan
Sleepless in Seattle (1993)
Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr
An Affair to Remember (1957)
Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol
Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995)
Raj Kapoor and Nargis
Shree 420 (1955)
Steve Martin and Daryl Hannah
Roxanne (1987)
Roddy McDowall and Lassie
Lassie Come Home (1943)
Mike Meyers and Cameron Diaz
(voicing Shrek and Princess Fiona)
Shrek films (2001 and later)
Bill Murray and Andie MacDowell
Groundhog Day (1993)
Ryan O'Neal and Tatum O'Neal
Paper Moon (1973)
Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart
Twilight (2008)
William Powell and Myrna Loy
The Thin Man (1934)
Robert Redford and Barbara Streisand
The Way We Were (1973)
Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock
Speed (1994)
Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman
The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey
Dirty Dancing (1987)
Billy Bob Thornton and Halle Berry
Monster's Ball (2001)
Tom and Jerry
Warner Brothers cartoons
John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara
The Quiet Man (1952) and others
Fay Wray and King Kong
King Kong (1933)
