Gemma Atkinson reunited with fiance Gorka after surprising ‘time apart’ comments | Celebrity News | Showbiz & TV

Gemma Atkinson blushed and grinned radiantly as she revealed her beau Gorka Marquez is finally home after eight weeks away. There’d been fears of a “rough patch” for the pair due to Strictly pro Gorka’s extended absences as he jetted to and from Madrid.

Singer Leigh-Anne Pinnock recently revealed that she finds her footballer boyfriend’s absences “unbearable”, whereas Gemma confused fans by being nonchalant about spending time apart. She previously admitted that she loves her alone time and that the separation caused by Gorka’s work trips keeps their relationship working well – but nevertheless this morning, the 39-year-old looked thrilled to have him back.

She shared the news with her two million Instagram followers early this morning, confiding that she was the only one in the house who was awake. Gemma disclosed that Gorka had arrived back at 1am last night, while their two children – five-year-old daughter Mia and baby son Thiago – were also asleep.

Even her elderly dog Norman was having a snooze by the sofa – until Gemma woke him by calling his name while filming. “I’m having a lazy and relaxing Sunday,” she beamed, revealing that she was planning to finish binge-watching Peaky Blinders.

“He’s home, he made it back, so it’s back to normal – and it’s sunny! The sun’s out,” she exclaimed. Gemma then shared footage of herself cuddling her dog to the tune of Stereophonics’ ‘Have A Nice Day’, while captioning it with “Everybody needs a bosom for a pillow” – lyrics from the 1990s Cornershop classic ‘Brimful of Asha’.

She’d been keeping busy in his absence by working on her Hits Radio show, and working up a sweat in the gym with weight-lifting and cardio exercises.

Gemma recently admitted during a Q&A session at The Podcast Show Festival in London, while promoting her The Overshare podcast, that fans are baffled about how they make things work despite Gorka’s absences.

The couple had been the subject of savage speculation that they were having a “rough patch” as Gorka spent the majority of each week away filming a TV show which has been branded the Spanish version of Strictly.

The native Spaniard also has family in Bilbao – but Gemma recently revealed that’s no barrier to a happy relationship, adding that they also intend to buy a property in Spain.

At the Q&A, she told Express.co.uk: “I get asked a lot about my fella… he works away a lot, and people ask – ‘how does that work?’”

However, she insisted: “I think that’s why it works. It’s either out of sight, out of mind, or absence makes the heart grow fonder!

“I get asked a lot, ‘how do you do that on your own with the kids?’ but it’s all we’ve ever known in our relationship, and I think, ‘How do [other people] cope living with them 24/7 and seeing them all the time?’”

She added: “Swapping stories shows how each different family makes their circumstances work.”