It’s pretty much impossible for any single Strictly Come Dancing contestant to avoid rumours of a dance floor romance.
Or half of the married ones either, for that matter… darn that infamous curse!
So perhaps it’s unsurprising that former soap star Gemma Atkinson, 32, found herself linked to pro dancer Gorka Marquez in recent weeks.
Two single, ridiculously fit and attractive people + the same TV show = they must be dating, right?
Er, not quite…
Gemma spoke out in a new interview to insist she’s NOT interested in dating hunky Gorka, who is partnered with Alexandra Burke, and says there’s nothing’s going on between them behind the scenes.
“They’re like my kids. I throw birthday parties for them.”
Gemma said that as far as she can tell, rumours she was getting hot ‘n’ heavy with Gorka started after an online poll asked fans to choose which Stricly star she should hook up with.
When Gorka was voted as the top choice, the speculation spread like wildfire.
In truth, ex Emmerdale and Hollyoaks star Gem said she’s barely seen Gorka since Strictly started, having only rubbed shoulders with him at the launch show and during live shows.
She also laughed off so-called recent source claims that the couple got cosy at Gorka’s birthday party in September by pointing out he hadn’t actually had a birthday party…
“He’s a friend and the only thing we’ve shared is his guacamole recipe,” she insisted.
She quipped to The Sun: “I’ve been single for ages so there wouldn’t be any curse for me. It would be a blessing!”
But she admitted that dancing the tango with a relative stranger isn’t as sultry as it may seem on camera.
“Being forced to be face-to-face with someone you’ve just met is mortifying,” she said.
“It sounds all lovely. But it’s like doing a scene with one of your mates at Emmerdale. On camera it looks good, but when you’re in it and doing it, it’s awkward.”
Gemma is partnered with Aljaz Skorjanec in this year’s Strictly, scoring a solid 20 for their first dance, a cha cha cha to Shawn Mendes’ There’s Nothing Holding Me Back.
On the second live show, they performed a waltz to Josh Groban’s A Time For Us and upped their score to 26.
The Key 103 radio presenter has been single since splitting from personal trainer boyfriend Olly Foster in 2016, after a two-year relationship.
And in January this year, she made her feelings perfectly clear when it came to constant questions about her love life.
An angry Gemma ranted on Instagram that she was fed up with being asked about who she was dating, why she was single, or whether she wanted to settle down.
“If one more person reminds me of “clocks ticking at your age” or “You should look at settling down soon” I will flip!” she raged.
“Why do we drill into people that marriage is the main key to success in life?
Read more: Lorraine Kelly in cringey on-air gaffe
“And not your inner happiness or drive to smash your career goals or work on yourself and only settle down and have a family and a partner when you feel ready too and not just because you’ve hit 30?
“Can we break the mould please and do what makes us happy and not what we feel pressured into by society?”
Hear, hear!