01 October 2023 , 15:11
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Strictly star Gemma Atkinson cheered on her fiancé Gorka Marquez as he hit the dancefloor.
The former soap actress was joined by the couple's two children as they watched the Strictly Come Dancing pro strut his stuff on Saturday night. Gemma, along with daughter Mia, four, and two-month-old son Thiago snuggled up on the sofa to show their support to Gorka and celeb partner Nikita Kanda as they did the Charleston.
Posting on her social media, Gemma shared a short clip of her with her two kids as they sang along to the Strictly theme tune. She also reposted Gorka's snap of him with Nikita before their dance, saying: "Let's goooooo!!! Team Gorka." Gemma and Gorka first met on Strictly in 2017, although they weren’t Strictly partners - with Gorka partnered with Alexandra Burke and Gemma with Aljaž Škorjanec. Rumours swirled around the couple during the show until February 2018 when the pair went public with their romance.
Gemma snuggled up with daughter Mia and son Thiago (Instagram)
They cheered on Gorka and Nikita (Instagram)She insisted however that they were “genuinely” not together while competing on the show. By the end of the year, Gemma announced she was pregnant with their daughter Mia. On Valentine's Day in 2021, Gorka finally popped the question and the couple welcomed their son this year. Gemma recently admitted she’ll feel a bit of a Strictly ‘widow’ during the show because of the “gruelling” hours involved.
She said: “When Strictly is on it’s all sequins and sparkles and everyone’s all happy, for me it’s the best show on telly and the countdown to Christmas. But the reality of it is it’s time away from family.” The professional dancer has been working "for months" after the pair welcomed son Thiago Thomas Marquez back in July. Opening up about Gorka's absence on Steph's Packed Lunch before Strictly's start date, Gemma admitted it "was hard".
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"He's home at the weekend but once the show starts, depending on where his partner is, he'll have to go [off again]," she said. After being asked if he's only seen Thiago 'a few times', Gemma replied: "Yeah, when he was born, [Gorka] had a week at home with him and since then he's had three weekends with him, and that's it." She added: "I always say that every year when they announce [the line-up], the first thing I do, I don't want their height or anything like that, I go 'where are they based?'. Because it means he can come home after rehearsals."
Gemma has previously shared how she wants her fiancé to have "chemistry" with his Strictly celeb partner. The couple are very much aware of the so-called Strictly curse, yet Gorka has branded it a "myth". Speaking of the infamous curse, Gorka said: “That can happen everywhere in any job.”
The former Hollyoaks star told OK!: “I remember when I had to dance the rumba with Aljaž. Everyone said, ‘You have to look into his eyes and get close,’ and I was like, ‘Oh my God, this is awful!’. But the dance looked rubbish because I didn’t do it." She added: "I’m always rooting for them to have chemistry! I think Gorka and I are very lucky in that we’re both understanding of each other’s jobs."