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

Gorka Marquez spoke on Lorraine this morning (Image: ITV)

Gorka Marquez has admitted that "everyone is looking at him more closely" now after the Strictly Come Dancing scandal.

Giovanni Pernice was the subject of multiple allegations from Amanda Abbington. A BBC investigation upheld six of the 17 allegations, but Giovanni was reportedly pleased that the most serious claims were dismissed.

Elsewhere, Graziano di Prima departed the show after he admitted to kicking his celebrity partner Zara McDermott in rehearsals. At the time, he said: "I didn’t deliberately hurt anyone. I am not a monster. I am not an abusive man."

Speaking on Lorraine today, Gorka was asked about the recent scandal. Lorraine Kelly shared: "Have you felt the pressure of more scrutiny on the show? Because you know people are obsessed about this show so everything you do makes headlines."

Gorka then replied: "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."

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Gorka and Dr Punam's dance wasn't rated highly this week (Image: PA)

Over the weekend, Gorka stepped in to defend his celebrity partner Dr Punam. She looked close to tears after receiving the critique from the judges, and the pair's score dropped from an impressive 33 to 20 out of 40 this week.

Whilst she was happy to "hold her hands up" to her mistakes, Gorka stepped in to defend her.

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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."

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Gorka has been open about the struggles of Strictly, admitting it has been hard to be away from his family. He has temporarily moved to Glasgow to train with Dr Punam, far away from his family home in Manchester.

He admitted he was "having a moment that sometimes we hide or keep for ourselves, especially being a man".

Gorka added: "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."

Lorraine airs weekdays on ITV1 and ITVX at 9am.

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

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

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

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

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