grammatical number - "There are a couple of apples" or "there is a couple of apples"?

You have only one couple of apples, so it's singular.
There are multiple apples, so it's plural.

Which one is right, "there are a couple of apples" or "there is a couple of apples"? I have seen both used.

In Dutch you would say "there is a couple of apples" because you only have one couple of apples. How about English?

Answer

There are 3 things that need mentioning here:

1) Couple as a group of two people in a relationship:

In this case you say:

Where is the couple that requested the wedding?

But you would also say:

They are a lovely couple.

2) Couple as a few:

In this case, you use are, examples:

There are a few apples on the table = There are a couple of apples on the table.

3) As in the 2nd case, but contracted:

When you contract in spoken English, this is the special case where you can contract are to is, like this:

There are a couple of apples on the table. => There's a couple of apples on the table.

Because you cannot contract to there're.