Strictly’s Gemma Atkinson speaks out about THOSE Simon Rimmer ‘affair’ claims, saying she’s not bothered by the false rumours
STRICTLY Come Dancing star Gemma Atkinson has spoken out on the false rumours that she and happily married Simon Rimmer had a fling while competing on the show last year.
The pair were subject to online claims they’d had an “affair” after a newspaper accused two of the contestants of sleeping together, but didn’t name them.
But Gemma says that she’s not concerned about the incorrect stories.
“You’ve just got to take it with a pinch of salt. With anything that goes on, you can’t really look at it in any specific way. We’re all used to it now.”
“Me and Simon are great friends. I’m friends with his wife as well, which made the whole thing funny.”
Simon has also slammed the reports in the past, saying: “Gemma is like a daughter to me and has become a friend of all my family. I think it’s funny.”
Most read in TV and Showbiz
And fellow contestant Chizzy Akudolu denied the rumours again to The Sun, saying: “No, impossible. Absolutely impossible. They are so close, I don’t believe that for a minute.
“Not the way he talked about her, he talked about her like she was his daughter, I don’t believe it for one minute.”
Simon is happily married to wife Ali, and has two children: Florence, 19, and Hamish, 14.
Speaking about the famous Strictly ‘curse’, Simon said wife Ali wasn’t bothered at all.
Speaking last year, he said: “One of our friends said to her the other week, ‘Are you not worried about the Strictly curse?’
“And she said, ‘Hold on. Let me get this straight. So you’re saying a really, really attractive, young, professional dancer is going to be attracted to my lumbering 54-year-old husband who can’t dance? No, I’m not worried.’
“She said it without even a beat, not even a second, where there was that trepidation in her voice.”
Gemma has been linked to dancer Gorka Marquez since they met on the show last year.
They’ve been spotted kissing, having cosy dinner dates together and last week, left rehearsals for the live tour together.
Got a story? email [email protected] or call us direct on 02077824220