Latest news with #GorkaMarquez
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Bury star to take part in Manchester race TODAY alongside famous fiancé
A radio presenter and former soap star from Bury is set to run in a popular Manchester race this weekend alongside her fiancé – and they've already raised more than £13,000 for charity. Gemma Atkinson, 40, will be taking part in a 10k run this Sunday, May 18, while her fiancé Gorka Márquez, 34 is taking on the half marathon at the AJ Bell Great Manchester Run in the city centre. The pair met while on Strictly Come Dancing in 2017 and have two children together. Gemma is the president of Edenfield animal sanctuary Bleakholt and is using the event to fundraise for the renovation and extension of the cattery as part of 'Project Purr' which launched in March this year. The current cattery at Bleakholt can house around 70 cats but they have 'hundreds more' on the waiting list in need of help. Gemma Atkinson (Image: Bleakholt Animal Sanctuary) Get the latest news delivered straight to your inbox by signing up to the Bury Times morning newsletter as well as our breaking news alerts. The renovation, which is hoped to begin later this year, will transform the existing buildings, allowing the sanctuary to house at least another 100 cats while improving the welfare of the cats they look after. Together, Gemma and Gorka have raised an incredible £13,116 ahead of the run. Gemma said: "I am so proud that myself and Gorka have raised more than £13,000 for Bleakholt's Project Purrfect. "It means so much to us that we can play our part in ensuring Bleakholt help more stray, abandoned and neglected cats. "The run will be a test for both of us - but we are looking forward to it!" Bleakholt manager Karen Weed said: "We are so thankful to Gemma and Gorka for fundraising for 'Project Purrfect.' 'More cats than ever are being abandoned and neglected and the £300,000 renovation and extension of our cattery can make a difference. 'They have raised an amazing amount, which will all go into helping the cats in the area have a better life. READ NEXT: Crews back in town for second day of filming major TV drama READ NEXT: Man who set up dog walking business while grieving his parents shortlisted for award 'Everyone at Bleakholt wishes them good luck in the day!" The animal charity rehomed more than 500 cats last year but is facing a crisis due to 'unprecedented levels' of unwanted, abandoned, pregnant, stray and unwell cats in the area. To find out more about the appeal or to make a donation, you can visit the Bleakholt website.
Wales Online
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
Strictly Come Dancing's Gorka Marquez says he's spotted 'new judges'
Strictly Come Dancing's Gorka Marquez says he's spotted 'new judges' Strictly Come Dancing professional dancer Gorka Marquez has been reunited with a few of his co-stars as they acted as judges for the European Championships in Blackpool Gorka Márquez spotted the all-star reunion at a dancing championship over the weekend (Image: Carlos Alvarez, Getty Images ) Gorka Marquez will be taking to the floor once more later this year alongside his fellow professional dancers, following the line-up's confirmation by the BBC earlier in the month. Returning to the beloved BBC One dance competition for its 23rd series in autumn with Gorka are fan-favourites Nadiya Bychkova, Katya Jones, Amy Dowden, Karen Hauer, Neil Jones, and Nikita Kuzmin. Joining them will also be Dianne Buswell, Luba Mushtuk, Jowita Przystal, Johannes Radebe, Aljaž Škorjanec, Kai Widdrington, Nancy Xu, Carlos Gu, Lauren Oakley, Michelle Tsiakkas, Vito Coppola, and there will be two fresh faces amongst the pros, set to be introduced closer to the series start. Sarah James, executive producer at BBC Studios, said: "The excitement is already building ahead of the new series and in addition to welcoming back our fantastic returning Pros, we are looking forward to welcoming two brand new professional dancers to the line up who will help bring another unforgettable series of dazzling dance and loads more besides to viewers later in 2025." Gorka posted from the European Championships held at Blackpool's Winter Gardens (Image: Gorka Marquez Instagram ) Article continues below As we await the unveiling of the celebrity contestants who will sashay onto the Strictly stage, more information about the forthcoming series will be revealed promptly. Gorka has humorously suggested a new judging panel. Over the weekend, Shirley Ballas, the head judge of Strictly, was spotted alongside Vito, Neil and Kai at the European Championships held at Blackpool's Winter Gardens. Kai shared a snapshot of the quartet on Instagram, captioning it: "A fabulous weekend of judging the European championships in Blackpool with the Strictly fam." However, Gorka couldn't resist making a witty observation: "Left to right the new Anton Shirley Bruno and Craig," he commented, followed by a tongue-out emoji and a hand-over-mouth emoji. Gorka joked about the new judging panel (Image: Kai Widdrington Instagram ) Fans were quick to respond to the post. @joannagoody remarked: "Suited and booted! you look fab." @danyser9 said: "An outstanding panel of judges!" while @stacew23 added: "Looking fabulous. Love Shirleys suit." @clarebear1806 responded: "You look amazing. Very well suited and booted." @kazcar55 posted: "You all look wonderful." @elainewalsh98 shared: "Wow what a team. All look fabulous." @jaggerdebbie added: "What a good looking line up." Article continues below Strictly Come Dancing is all set to make its glamorous return to BBC One and BBC iPlayer later this year.
The Independent
12-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Gorka Marquez: ‘Life is about balance, not just work, work, work'
For Strictly dancer Gorka Marquez, the key to happiness is getting the balance right. So although he's about to embark on a gruelling 41-date UK dance tour over a less than two-month period, he's determined to squeeze in as much time as possible with his fiancée, the actress and Hits Radio presenter Gemma Atkinson, and their two young children. 'The good thing about the tour is we only do one show a day,' he explains, 'and some of the places are near to us in Manchester, so with those shows, I'll always drive back home. 'It's miles in the body, obviously, because you've done a show and then you have to drive two hours back, but it's worth it because I get to wake up in the morning with Gemma and the kids, see them for a little bit, have a catch-up with them, take the kids to school and then go back to work. 'So they don't feel the difference of me being away – it's more like, 'Oh, daddy's gone to work, and then in the night, he comes home.' 'It's difficult with every job, I guess – all jobs require time. But now I've been at home since Strictly finished, so I've spent all these weeks at home.' And the Spaniard, who has Mia, aged five, and Thiago, aged one, with Atkinson, says striking the right balance between work and family time is a major reason why he missed this year's Strictly Come Dancing Live! tour, which finished this week. 'When people ask why didn't you do the arena tour, that's one of the reasons,' he reveals. 'I have to find balance – I think life is about balance, not just work, work, work or just family. I want to keep both of them, so I make choices.' Instead, he chose to do his own Speakeasy tour with his Strictly Come Dancing co-star dancer Karen Hauer, who he says is 'like my sister'. He describes the new show, which emulates the edgy atmosphere of speakeasy clubs from the 1920s through to the 1970s , as 'passionate, and dark with intensity', and explains: 'When you think of Strictly, you think of all the sparkles, the glitz, the glamour, and it's not going to be like that. 'When someone comes to a speakeasy, there's going to be something more underground, undercover. The idea comes from numbers like Cabaret and Chicago, and both of us really enjoy the mood and style during those dances – so why not bring this into a show?' And, amazingly, for the last few weeks of the tour Marquez, 34, will be doing shows in the UK and then flying to Spain, where he's a judge on the Spanish Dancing with the Stars, and then immediately flying back to do his next UK tour date. 'So I'm going to be finishing up a show in the evening, getting on the plane, travelling to Spain, doing a show in Spain, coming back and doing the UK show the next day,' he says matter-of-factly. 'I'm going to try and document it, because it will be quite fun.' Fun or not, after such incredible hard work, Marquez will finally be able to take a deep breath and enjoy some family time. He says: 'Then I have another three months at home with the kids, because they grow up very quick and it's those simple things like when they lose their first tooth, or walk for the first time, say their first word, first dance performance at school. You don't want to miss those things, because they go very quick. 'But also, you're going to keep doing what you do, because they are proud of it, and they love to watch you doing it.' But keeping doing what he does means Marquez has to keep very fit, and he describes himself as a 'very healthy fitness enthusiast', who trains five times a week and runs two to three times a week, complemented by daily ice baths and saunas. 'I don't do it because I have to, I do it because I love to,' he stresses. But being a professional dancer, working out isn't all he does at the gym. 'When I'm in the gym, I'm playing my Spanish music, and I'm always just having a little dance and I just start to film it,' he says. 'People love to watch me dance, I guess, and I sometimes share workouts, and people might find that boring, so I just share what I do when I'm not doing the workout, which is dancing.' Marquez eats as healthily as possible, 'mostly natural foods – veg, meats, nothing processed. Lots of water and electrolytes,' and loves cooking too. 'A lot of people ask me always about my cooking,' he says. 'So this year, I'm going to make an effort of recording more videos of me cooking and posting them, because every time I post pictures of the food I make, people ask me to give them the recipe. They're very simple recipes – quick things you can do to eat healthy.' He says he does a lot of the cooking at home, but stresses that Atkinson, who he met when she competed on Strictly in 2017, does some too. 'Most of the time I would say I cook, but she also does,' he says. 'I just love it and I find it therapeutic – I love to play peaceful guitar music, and I play it when I'm making breakfast. I put it on for Thiago to sleep as well – he loves it.' Marquez and Atkinson got engaged in 2021, but still have no immediate plans to tie the knot. 'I don't think it will happen this year,' he admits. 'We're good the way we are. We have two children, we have a house – getting married is just a document, to be honest. In our heads, we're married already. 'Marriage these days doesn't have as much value, it's not like the old days. I think the value is in the compromise with one another.' And that compromise means Atkinson looks after the children when her partner's away, and vice-versa. 'The good thing about Gemma and I is that we're great team,' says Marquez affectionately. 'For example, she just had a weekend away with her friends because they got it for her 40th birthday. So I stayed with the children, and I absolutely loved it. 'She was like: 'Are you going to miss me?', but I actually had the best time, just me and the kids. We had picnics, we went to the park. Saturday night, we ordered takeaway pizzas and made a picnic in the living room watching a movie. It was fantastic.'
