Gemma Atkinson reveals 'grief' she gets over Gorka Marquez and his efforts to stay on Strictly Come Dancing

Gemma Atkinson has revealed the 'grief' she gets over Gorka Marquez and his efforts that keep him on Strictly Come Dancing and also committed to his home life with her and their two children. The couple are no strangers to spending chunks of time away from each other and their children due to work commitments.

Bury-born Gemma has recently returned to her main job on Hits Radio where she co-hosts the drivetime slot from 4pm alongside Mike Toolan and with producer Matt following the end of her maternity leave.

Gemma, 39, took a nine-month break from her radio job as she and Gorka, 33, welcomed their son, Thiago, back in July, just over four years after the birth of their daughter Mia. But following their baby's birth, Gorka was soon back working on the 2023 series of Strictly.

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And now, the dancer is spending weeks away from home as he tours the country with his BBC One dance contest co-stars in the Strictly Come Dancing The Professionals UK Tour which officially began on Wednesday night (May 1) are a few weeks of rehearsals in the capital.

It has meant that Gemma and Gorka, who met on the BBC One dance contest in 2017, have faced their latest time apart but Gemma has told how they make it work.

"Gorka always comes home, even when he’s absolutely exhausted and even if it’s just for a few hours, he’ll do the drive or get the train home, just to spend time with us," the mum-of-two told Metro.co.uk.

Things work even better for the couple if Gorka gets a partner who lives in or close to Greater Manchester and Gemma even joked that she doesn’t all care if he gets Miss Word "as long as she lives local, and Gorka can help with the school runs".

"It is hard being away due to my job and missing the family but a lot of people work away, including my dad when I was growing up. I won’t be leaving," Gorka, who has been part of the BBC show since 2016, also admitted. But the publication told how Gemma jumped in to tell Gorka he can’t quit as her mum loves going to watch the live show too much.

Meanwhile, Gorka recently landed a job on the judging panel for Spain’s version of Strictly Come Dancing and despite Gorka, who is from Bilbao, flying back and forward during filming they don’t plan on relocating but Gemma and Gorka, who left Spain as a teenager and feels like a return would be ‘going backwards’, would like a second home there.

"I get grief on social media. I get called selfish for not allowing him to go to Spain when it’s him," Gemma admitted. "I’d take Spain over our weather."

Fans are soon set to get an insight into the new family of four's recent life with the return of their own reality series. They appeared in their own reality TV series ahead of the arrival of their second child and showed the pair opening up their lives and Greater Manchester home to the cameras as they documented their second pregnancy journey and the "absolute utter chaos of our day-to-day lives at home juggling work, dogs, toddlers and hormones."

Following the success of the show, and the arrival of their second child, it was revealed in January, the pair would be letting the cameras back in to share more of their life unfiltered in the second series of Gemma and Gorka: Life Behind the Lens for UKTV’s free-to-air entertainment channel W and streaming service UKTV Play, this time for six episodes.

When it returns on May 6, the series will once again see the couple will open their doors to their private life and offer viewers an intimate look into their world, as they embrace full-on family chaos since becoming a family of four.

Gemma and Gorka: Life Behind The Lens which airs on W 6 May at 8pm.