Gorka Marquez reunites with his 17-month-old daughter Mia and girlfriend Gemma Atkinson following 78 DAYS in the Strictly Come Dancing bubble
He and his celebrity dance partner, Maisie Smith, placed as runners-up in the Strictly Come Dancing final on Saturday evening.
And Gorka Marquez reunited with his daughter Mia and girlfriend Gemma Atkinson on Sunday, 78 days after leaving them to enter the BBC show’s COVID-19 bubble.
The professional dancer, 30, appeared overcome with emotion as he held onto his 17-month-old daughter tightly in a series of heartwarming Instagram snaps.
Sweet! Strictly Come Dancing’s Gorka Marquez reunited with his daughter Mia and girlfriend Gemma Atkinson on Sunday, 78 days after leaving them to enter the BBC show’s COVID bubble
Gorka was seen sporting a taupe tracksuit and khaki beanie hat in the images which he captioned: ‘HOME ♥️’.
Toddler Mia bore a striking resemblance to her mother Gemma, 36, as she rocked a full head of blonde hair and wrapped her arms around her father.
Due to the pandemic, Gorka was forced to spend time away from his family so he could participate in the 2020 production of Strictly.
Bill Bailey and Oti Mabuse were ultimately crowned the winners of Saturday night’s final, beating Gorka and Maisie, 19, in addition to HRVY and Janette Manrara, and finally Jamie Laing and Karen Hauer.
‘HOME’: The professional dancer, 30, appeared overcome with emotion as he held onto his 17-month-old daughter tightly for a series of heartwarming social media snaps
Maisie and Gorka brought the festive feel to the final with their beautiful dance to We Need A Little Christmas by Idina Menzel, earning them their first 30 of the night.
Motsi praised the performance: ‘Content of the highest quality – tap, jazz , musical, everything,’ while Craig added: ‘Annoying because I couldn’t find anything wrong with it.’
Maisie competed on the most recent season of Strictly in the hopes it would boost family morale, after her dad Stephen lost his job at a bank.
And in an interview conducted before the finale, her mum and manager Julia revealed that the star was hoping a win would lift her close-knit family’s mood.
Home is where the heart is: Due to the pandemic, Gorka was forced to spend time away from his partner Gemma, 36, so he could participate in the 2020 production (pictured in March)
Julia, 50, told The Sun of Stephen: ‘He looked after the office premises. When everyone was sent home he didn’t have anything to do.
‘Having Maisie on Strictly has been a massive distraction from what we were going through. He’s so proud, he’s not into the limelight, he likes to sit back and watch us have fun.’
Julia was in the studio audience along with Maisie’s lookalike sister Scarlett, 22, for the semi-finals, where they watched the actress advance to the final stage of the competition after a largely impressive season.
And while much has been made of fellow finalist HRVY, 21, revealing that he’d like to take Maisie on a date once the series ends, Julia said: ‘He’d have to come round and get to know us for six months first. But he seems like a genuinely lovely guy.’
Valiant effort: He and his celebrity dance partner, Maisie Smith, 19, placed as runners-up on Saturday’s final as Bill Bailey and Oti Mabuse walked away victorious
Family: In a recent interview, Maisie’s mum and manager Julia, revealed that the star competed on Strictly in hopes of boosting family morale, after her dad Stephen lost his job at a bank