Helen George has expressed her joy following the news that her Strictly Come Dancing partner Aljaz Skorjanec is set to become a first-time dad.
In this week's HELLO!, the professional dancer and his wife Janette Manrara exclusively announced they are due to welcome their first baby together later this year.
Watch as Janette and Aljaz reveal what kind of parents they will be...
After the happy news was revealed, Call the Midwife star Helen took to social media to pen: "Amazing xxxx so so pleased. So much love to you all xxxx."
Back in 2015, Helen finished in sixth place with Aljaz during their time on the ballroom competition. At the time, the Birmingham-born star was going through a tumultuous patch in her personal life.
Helen previously revealed how the struggled to deal with the limelight when her marriage to ex-husband Oliver Boot came to an end. The former couple parted ways in 2015 - the news of their split came out when Helen reached the quarter-finals on Strictly with dance partner Aljaz.
© Photo: BBCHelen danced with Aljaz back in 2015
Speaking about being in the limelight at that moment, the actress told Daily Mail's You Magazine in 2021: "I was so naive that I thought no one would be interested in me, so that was a shock. I soon realised I didn’t want all that celebrity stuff."
Helen has since found love with her Call the Midwife co-star Jack Ashton, and the couple have gone on to welcome two daughters, Lark and Wren.
Meanwhile, Aljaz and Janette are overjoyed at the prospect of welcoming their first baby. The couple, who showcased Janette's baby bump in a series of exclusive photos, told how they found out the surprise news in early December as they were about to start IVF treatment.
© Photo: HELLO!The couple have shared their baby joy exclusively with HELLO!
"For the past couple of years we hadn't been using protection but nothing was happening, so we thought IVF was the next best thing for us to do," said Janette, who quit her role as a professional dancer two years ago so she and Aljaz could try for a baby.
She added: "I know that IVF can be really strenuous on a woman's body and there is no guarantee it will work, so to know that this little miracle just came from a wonderful night we had together is amazing. I think the baby decided to make Mum and Dad panic a bit before saying, 'Ok, fine, I'm coming up now.'"
The couple also revealed they are leaving their flat in London this week and relocating to Cheshire, where Strictly pro-dancer Gorka Marquez and his wife Gemma Atkinson – who Aljaz partnered in the 2017 series – live nearby and are expecting their second baby.
"It will be so nice to have Uncle Gorka and Auntie Gemma nearby," said Janette. "Gemma and I share the same birthday so I can't wait to tell her that we'll be having a baby together too."
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