Gemma Atkinson and Simon Rimmer previously denied rumours of a budding romance between the pair, and shut them down once again on Wednesday evening as they enjoyed an evening out together – joined by Simon's wife, Ali. The trio, along with Strictly Come Dancing stars Mollie King and AJ Pritchard, went out to a bar in Manchester - and it looked like they were having a lovely time! AJ posted a photo of the group on his Instagram account, captioning it: "Little Strictly Reunion @mollieking @rimmersimon @glouiseatkinson." The photo pleased Strictly fans no end, with one user writing: "Ahh this is so sweet," while another said: "Happy to see you all enjoying yourselves." A third added: "Have a fun reunion!"
STORY: Strictly's Simon Rimmer responds to Gemma Atkinson 'romance' rumours
Gemma Atkinson and Simon Rimmer enjoyed a night out in Manchester
Earlier in the week, Simon addressed reports that he had a brief romance with his Strictly co-star. The 54-year-old TV presenter, who is married with two children, poked fun of the speculation on Twitter. He said: "Gemma is like a daughter to me and has become a friend of all my family. I think it's funny." Gemma, added to the comment, replying: "Howling" with a string of crying laughter emojis. Simon continued to show his sense of humour as he replied to fans. When one commented that he was "seriously punching" above his weight, Simon, 54, quipped: "Gemma is? Thanks." The Sunday Brunch star also tweeted Gemma directly, asking: "Do you think we need to be quiet about our date on Weds with my wife and 23 of our friends Gem? x."
The Strictly co-stars recently addressed reports of a brief romance
Simon, who was paired with Karen Clifton on the show, became the fifth celebrity to be voted off Strictly at the end of October. Gemma, meanwhile, made it to the show's final with her dance partner Aljaz Skorjanec, with Holby City actor Joe McFadden, 42, and his dance partner Katya Jones being crowned the winners of the popular BBC One dance contest.
