His 15-year stint on Strictly Come Dancing helped catapult Brendan Cole to stardom, and established his position as one of the world's most recognisable ballroom dancers. But while he is no stranger to the spotlight, the 44-year-old New Zealander has adopted a different policy when it comes to his young family. Brendan and his wife Zoe Hobbs, who have been married since 2010, are parents to two children, and they have taken every precaution to protect their privacy, choosing to never show their faces on social media. That's not to say fans haven't been given rare glimpses of seven-year-old Aurelia and two-year-old Dante, however. The family are currently self-isolating together in their holiday home in Mallorca, and Brendan and Zoe haven't been able to resist sharing sweet snapshots on Instagram. We take a look back at some of their best family photos taken during lockdown….
WATCH: Brendan Cole & wife Zoe dance the night away as lockdown measures ease in Spain
Shortly after lockdown began. Zoe took to Instagram to give an insight into their new home life. She shared a photo of a homemade necklace, writing: "Day 12 in the Cole house (said in broad Jordi accent) Quite meditative really until the 2 year old wanted to join in by chucking the beads all over the floor. Leaving the maths to @brendancoleinsta while I stick to the reading and more creative stuff. When it comes to home schooling know your talents!"
Zoe shared a snapshot of a homemade necklace as she spoke about home life
To celebrate Easter, the couple posed for a filtered photo complete with bunny ears and love heart sunglasses. Zoe wrote: "Happy Easter y'all. Hope you managed to consume your body weight in chocolate and get a little rest and relaxation."
The couple posed together for an Easter photo
In April, Brendan again took to social media to repost a beautiful sunset photo of his wife on the beach with their children. He captioned the post: "Easier times. Magical times."
"Easier times. Magical times," Brendan captioned this family photo
That same month, Zoe chose to showcase Aurelia's photography skills, uploading a photo taken as they enjoyed some mother and daughter time together. She wrote: "Chasing waterfalls. One of my favourite birthdays ever. It's amazing what you hear when you strip back all the noise. A very simple birthday with my lovely family, fresh air, nature and a little bit of sunshine.
Zoe revealed daughter Aurelia had captured this photo
"My beautiful daughter took this picture while we were on our 'girls walk'. This virus is teaching us all a lot and as I'm now in the last year of my 30's I'm gonna make sure I really make this one count."
In May, Brendan delighted fans with a very rare photo of his mother, writing: "Happy New Zealand Mother's Day to a special mum who although has been a pain in my backside [winky face emoji] for 44 years is still the best mum a boy could wish for. Love you mum."
Brendan delighted fans with a rare photo of his mum
Just last month, Zoe uploaded a striking picture showing her enjoying a drink in the kitchen. She wrote: "This is how happy I am to see my friends! Nearly a week now since we entered the first phase of de-escalation here in Spain and we are slowly beginning to get out and about a bit more. Last night I got together with my 3 closest girl friends here on the island. We had beautiful food (which just happened to match my outfit), lovely local wine and the perfect company for a chilled girls' night. We laughed a lot!
Zoe enjoyed a girls' night in last month
"It's going to take a bit of getting used to our new situation and I'm not sure things will ever be quite the same again but I think we've all learned a lot over these last few months about what is really important in life. Friendship is definitely one." Brendan later reposted the image, sweetly writing: "Isn't she beautiful!"
Brendan shared this sweet snapshot of son Dante
Earlier this week, Brendan shared a beautiful portrait of his son Dante, sitting on the beach and looking out to the ocean. He wrote: "Favourite beach, favourite boy, favourite @thezoec #mallorca #Mallorcalife. After many weeks having the beaches on our doorstep but not being able to visit them, they are now open and available to appreciate."
The couple's daughter Aurelia on the beach
That same day, he also shared a photo of Aurelia, her hair covering her face as she lay in the sand. "My number 1 blonde," the proud dad wrote. "7 years old, still innocent, a kind and wonderful human being, and daddy's little girl!"
At the start of June, Brendan and Zoe announced the arrival of two new family members – tiny little kittens! "Our babies," the pro dancer captioned a snapshot of the pair.
