Gemma Atkinson and Gorka Marquez looked happier than ever as they enjoyed a romantic night out in Manchester for their six year anniversary.
The actress, 39, and her professional dancer fiancé, 33, walked hand in hand as they arrived at Sexy Fish bar and restaurant on Monday evening.
Their loved-up outing comes shortly after Gemma hit back at any speculation that the couple were going through a ‘rough patch’ due to Gorka’s work commitments.
During their evening out, Gemma cut an elegant figure in a black dress and coat, which she styled with an elegant black court shoe.
The former Hollyoaks star wore her blonde locks swept back off her face and added soft touches of make-up to her pretty features.
Gemma Atkinson and Gorka Marquez looked happier than ever as they enjoyed a romantic night out in Manchester for their six year anniversary
The actress, 39, and her professional dancer fiancé, 33, walked hand in hand as they arrived at Sexy Fish bar and restaurant on Monday evening
Gemma accessorised with a gold pendant chain necklace and a black cross-body bag, which no doubt held her essentials for the evening.
Meanwhile, Gorka also opted for an all black look, sporting a black shirt with trousers and a pair of classic Converse.
Gemma recently revealed that she always went for ‘bad boys’ before her relationship with ‘nice lad’ Gorka.
The engaged couple have been together for six years and share two children Mia, four, and six-month-old Thiago.
Gemma opened up about how he showed her ‘what a relationship should be like’ after a series of failed romances when they met on Strictly.
She told The Sun: ‘If someone had said: ‘OK, he’s Spanish, a dancer and wears sparkles on a weekend,’ I would have gone: ‘Oh no, clearly he’s not for me.’
‘That’s where I’d been going wrong – I was always going for the bad boys. As soon as you give a nice lad a chance, you realise you don’t have to be constantly wondering where you stand.
‘Gorka opened my eyes to what a relationship should be like. I’m past that stage of life where I like the bad boy.’
Gorka is currently away from home a lot, as he is a judge on the Spanish version of Strictly, Bailando con las Estrellas, requiring him to spend a lot of time in Madrid for filming.
Gemma recently revealed that she always went for ‘bad boys’ before her relationship with ‘nice lad’ Gorka
Gemma has opened up about how he showed her ‘what a relationship should be like’ after a series of failed romances
As the Spanish dancer jets across Europe for his new role, Gemma has been caring for their kids back home in Manchester.
There has been much speculation that the distance has caused the couple to be going through a ‘rough patch’, with reports saying they have been struggling with ‘tension’.
But Gemma has now responded to the claims saying she would ‘get bored’ if she was with someone 24/7.
She told the publication: ‘Even looking at the back of their head can annoy me! I love my own space, and whenever he’s on Strictly, I see it as my time on my own with Mia and Thiago. Mia sleeps in my bed and it’s so nice.’
Gemma also told how the famous ‘Strictly curse’ doesn’t bother her at all when Gorka dances with a new partner as she is in the industry herself and knows how things work.
It comes after Gemma denied the reports that her and Gorka’s relationship was rocky, insisting the rumours were ‘not true’.
The former Hollyoaks actress, 39, and the Strictly Come Dancing star, 33, have been together for six years and share two children Mia, four, and six-month-old Thiago
She told The Sun: ‘If someone had said: ‘OK, he’s Spanish, a dancer and wears sparkles on a weekend,’ I would have gone: ‘Oh no, clearly he’s not for me’
She added: ‘That’s where I’d been going wrong – I was always going for the bad boys. As soon as you give a nice lad a chance, you realise you don’t have to be constantly wondering where you stand’
Taking to her Instagram she joked that she enjoys the ‘peace’ while her partner is away honouring his work commitments.
When asked if she’d heard about the rumours, Gemma said: ‘Yes we did see them stories. There was a few floating around weren’t there which is news to us. It is what it is isn’t it. Happens all the time dunnit. It’s not true.’
She continued: ‘I think it’s because it was made out he’s working away a lot. He goes away Friday afternoon and comes back Sunday mornings.
‘He’s hardly bloomin’ overseas is he. Crikey it’s less than 48 hours, if anything it gives me a bit of peace at weekends. No offence Gorks.’
Clarifying her remarks, she added: ‘Well he is overseas but you know what I mean.’
Last year, Gemma was said to be ‘frustrated’ when Gorka was unable to get home during the final six weeks of Strictly, despite being voted out in week three with partner Nikita Kanda.
Earlier this month, a source told The Mirror Gemma is ‘effectively raising two kids by herself’ leaving her ‘frustrated’.
They said: ‘Gemma knows how important Gorka’s work is to him and goes above and beyond to be supportive but she found it challenging when he wasn’t able to travel back to Manchester to spend time with her and the kids, even when he’d been voted off last year’s series.
‘But then he signed up to Bailando con las Estrellas, and the plan changed. Gemma knows he’s just wanting to support his family, but it’s disappointing for her.
‘It’s a really rough patch for them. Gorka has also been frustrated because they haven’t had time to travel to Bilbao for Thiago to meet his elderly parents.’
The source added: ‘Gemma has been effectively raising two kids by herself. She was focusing on the end of the series as the end point – but the judging role was too good an opportunity to miss. As with any couple, the longer they’re apart, the more tension there is between them.’
