Gemma Atkinson has revealed how Gorka Marquez's Strictly Come Dancing co-star got involved when the couple were both feeling a sense of 'resentment' towards each other.
The former Hollyoaks and Emmerdale actress has spoken in a new interview about the 'grief' that she and her fiance received from the public following the birth of their daughter, Mia, in 2019.
It came after Gorka returned to work shortly after they welcomed their first child together less than two years after meeting on the hit BBC One dance show. The Spanish dancer was back on the road with Here Come The Boys alongside fellow Strictly pro Giovanni Pernice after he and Gemma brought their daughter, now two, home from hospital.
Gemma said: "We got a lot of grief for that. He had people messaging him saying: ‘What kind of father chooses his work over his child?' They didn’t realise he was contractually obliged – and how do they expect him to fund this child without working?"
She went on to tell The Sun : "But I resented that he was back on the road touring. What I didn’t realise was that he was feeling resentment towards me for being at home."
The Hits Radio presenter, from Bury, recalled getting a text message from Giovanni who urged her to check on Gorka as he was just as upset as she was about the situation. Giovanni told Gemma that her then-boyfriend had decided against going out after the show was finished.
"I FaceTimed him and he was in the hotel room on his own and he got upset and said: ‘I just want to come home. I don’t want to be here,'" Gemma said. "Then I felt upset and said: ‘Oh my god, I’ve been thinking you are having a whale of a time,’ and he replied: ‘You’re crazy!’
"If we’re lucky enough to do it [have a baby] again, we’ll know next time that the grass isn’t always greener, but we have to do what's necessary for the family."
The loved-up couple, who got engaged on Valentine's Day last year, suffered a traumatic time during Mia's arrival. Gemma has previously spoken out about Mia's terrifying birth which saw the Bury-born star needed an emergency C-section when doctors realised Mia's heart rate had dropped and the new mum almost died when she lost nearly a litre of blood after suffering a from a haemorrhage.
But the 37-year-old hasn't been put off and says another baby is "definitely" on the cards with Gemma having a rather poignant reason as to why she'd like Mia to have a sibling.
"Yes, we’d definitely love to give Mia a sibling. I’m one of two, Gorka’s one of two. I think growing up it’s nice to have someone," she added to The Sun. "When my dad passed away, without my sister Nina there, I probably wouldn’t have coped very well at all. I would love for Mia to have that kind of support network."
Gemma is currently preparing for the launch of her second book, The Ultimate Body Plan for New Mums 12 Weeks to Finding You Again, and took to Instagram last month with a post from part of the book which said: "10 things no one tells you will happen after having a baby."
The mum-of-one then said she was left 'howling' as she encouraged other mums to share the brutally honest things people don't often tell mums-to-be.
Before the release of her new book, Gemma and Gorka headed off on a sunny getaway with Mia. And Gemma sent her fiance wild as she sent temperature soaring by posing in a cut-out bikini on their holiday.
