Gorka Marquez's ‘guilt’ and Gemma Atkinson's plea sparked by Strictly Come Dancing issue

Gemma Atkinson has shared that her fiancé, Gorka Marquez, "gets so excited" when Strictly Come Dancing returns, but that he also struggles, as it means time away from his family.

The actress and Hits Radio presenter, who met Strictly pro Gorka on the show in 2017 and now shares two children, Mia and Thiago, with him, opened up about their relationship in an interview with New! Magazine.

She revealed that while Gorka loves Strictly and looks forward to it every year, he also realises that participating in the BBC show is more difficult since becoming a parent.

She said: "Gorka loves Strictly and every year, he gets so excited about it - we all do. But then, every year, he also realises he has to be away from home and wherever his celebrity partner is based, he has to go to them.

"Before we had children, it wasn't an issue, but when you have kids, your mind switches. Mia will ask, 'But why do you have to go, Papa?' and I think it makes him feel guilty."

She continued: "But in the grand scheme of things, we're so lucky we can travel. I'm constantly reassuring Gorka and saying, 'I've got this, don't worry', then when he goes, I'm like, 'Oh gosh, I need help', but at least he drives off in a good mood."

Earlier this month, the Hits Radio presenter disclosed that her son had fallen ill with a chest and ear infection just before Gorka left for Scotland to film the 2024 series of Strictly.

In a heartfelt Instagram post, the former Emmerdale actress was pictured cuddling her son, sharing that he was currently receiving "antibiotics and lots of TLC."

Gorka, who is dancing with Dr Punam Krishan this year, could potentially be away from his family for up to 15 weeks if he progresses far in the competition. The dancer recently expressed his mixed feelings on Instagram.

He said: "I feel like today should be one of those days where everyone might think is all happiness, joy, excitement, for all what is about to start with Strictly...And YES it is.

"But at the same time I get a feeling of sadness, guilt, for going away for what ever long it is. A feeling of letting them down for not being there, a sense of failure to them..."

Gorka embarked on his ballroom dancing career at the age of 12, later representing Spain at the World Latin Championships in 2010, before joining the Strictly team in 2016.

In 2020, Gorka and Maisie Smith came close to winning the show after making it to the final. He also reached the runner-up position in 2022 when he was partnered with TV host Helen Skelton.