A US man was left red faced after he proposed to his girlfriend on the Ellen show as the entire audience watched on, only to be rejected.
But there are reports the heartbreaking moment on Thursday's episode was a hoax, and the man, Jacob Waterdale, is actually an employee of the popular US chat show, the Huffington Post reports.
Footage of the live episode shows host Ellen DeGeneres introduce Mr Waterdale to the audience, reading a letter he wrote asking if he could propose his girlfriend, introduced only as Jodie, on her show.
Ellen then invites Mr Waterdale onto the stage as the cameras cut to Jodie in the audience who is holding her hands over her mouth and looking shocked.
Christmas music then fills the room, the audience jumps up and cheers, and Ellen laughs and moves onto her next segment, giving away presents as part of her 12 Days of Giveaways.
Ellen's YouTube page explains the bizarre episode, saying: "[The proposal] didn't seem to be going too well, but thankfully, it was the 12 Days of Giveaways!"
