BBC Strictly's Gorka Marquez says 'everyone is looking at me more closely' after scandal

Strictly Come Dancing professional Gorka Marquez has opened up about the recent scandal surrounding the show, which has seen Giovanni Pernice and Graziano di Prima in the headlines

Gorka Marquez has opened up the focus on him and his fellow professionals on Strictly Come Dancing.

The professional dancer admitted on Lorraine that "everyone is looking at him more closely" following the recent Strictly Come Dancing scandal. Strictly was shaken by multiple allegations from Amanda Abbington against dancer Giovanni Pernice. The BBC's probe supported six out of 17 complaints, with Giovanni said to be pleased the most serious ones weren't upheld.

In a separate incident, there was the exit of Graziano di Prima after he confessed to kicking his dance partner Zara McDermott in rehearsals. He said: "I didn't deliberately hurt anyone. I am not a monster. I am not an abusive man."

On Lorraine Kelly's show, Gorka said: "You know, this year, maybe everybody is looking at you with more close eyes, but I feel every day is the same you know. This show is one of the biggest shows on television and everybody loves the show and wants to see what happens and I think, dancers and celebrities, they have a huge impact on everyone that watches it but for me, right now, we're just focusing on the dance. It's 20 years of the show, let's celebrate."

During the show at the weekend, Gorka also took a stand for his celebrity dance partner Dr Punam amid critiques from the judges. Following their performance which received a dip in scores from 33 to a mere 20 points, Dr Punam appeared visibly upset, prompting Gorka to step up in her defence, reports the Express.

He said: "Obviously, she's not a dancer, she's not a performer, she's a GP. She doesn't do anything that has to do with performing in front of millions of people. So just to go out there and be on stage is incredible."

Gorka hasn't shied away from discussing the challenges that come with Strictly, including the difficulty of being separated from his loved ones. He's currently relocated to Glasgow for training sessions with Dr Punam, which means he's a considerable distance from his Manchester-based family. He confessed to "having a moment that sometimes we hide or keep for ourselves, especially being a man".

Gorka continued: "Yes it is. But at the same time, I get a feeling of sadness, guilt, for going away for however long it is. A feeling of letting them down for not being there, a sense of failure to them."

*Strictly Come Dancing airs weekends on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.