After dancing for nearly six months with Gorka Marquez, Strictly Come Dancing star Helen Skelton has confessed it will be "difficult" not to be with the professional dancer during the nationwide tour.
The mum-of-three, who narrowly missed out on the glitterball trophy in December, has now paired up with fellow pro Kai Widdrington for the show's live tour, which kicks off at the end of this month.
Watch the moment Helen Skelton rips figure-hugging dress during routine
"It's really difficult not to be with Gorka because we're such good friends," she told The Sun. "I've been asking him for advice a lot, so it feels like he's here. I'd have loved for him to do it, but it's almost like he's in the group."
Despite the partner switch, Helen is looking forward to spending time with the Strictly family. "It's such a tight knit group in the studio anyway," she added. "We all talked and all had a laugh so it's different, but it wasn't a worry and like, 'Oh my god what's going to happen.'
"We knew each other from the series, we all hung out and spoke a lot. I was very lucky Kai was able to do it."
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In a recent Q&A session on social media, Gorka explained why he opted to take some time off in lieu of taking part in the Strictly Live Tour. Providing clarification, he said: "After the Strictly series I always like to take some downtime to spend quality time with Gem and [daughter] Mia."
© Photo: Getty ImagesHelen will be dancing with Kai on the tour
The dad-of-one added: "I am grateful for the work but I also think spending time with family is important. Time flies and we won't get those memories back."
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The highly-anticipated nationwide tour kicks off in Leeds on Thursday 26 Jan with a whole host of familiar faces set to make a triumphant return.
Among those returning are the likes of Fleur East and Vito Coppola, Will Mellor and Nancy Xu, Molly Rainford and Carlos Gu, and Strictly champions Hamza Yassin and Jowita Przystal.
