Strictly Come Dancing's Gemma Atkinson Eyes 'Emmerdale' Return

Gemma Atkinson hasn’t even hit the dance floor yet, but she’s already weighing up her options for when her ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ journey comes to an end.

The former soap star, best known for her roles as Lisa Hunter in ‘Hollyoaks’ and Carly Hope in ‘Emmerdale’, has admitted she sees herself returning to the ITV soap in the future, but reckons she might need a bit if a lie-down once ‘Strictly’ is done.

She told Digital Spy on a potential soap comeback: “Carly Hope will go back at some point. But I might want a holiday at the end of [‘Strictly’].”

Over the weekend, it was revealed that Gemma would be partnered with Aljaž Skorjanec on this year’s ‘Strictly’, with the two having now started rehearsing for their first live performance in front of the judges (and the nation!) later this month.

While the new series only launched a matter of days ago, Gemma has already become the first of this year’s celebrity contestants to be at the centre of ‘Strictly’ romance rumours, with reports claiming she has been growing close to professional star Gorka Marquez behind the scenes.

A representative for Gemma did not comment when contacted by HuffPost UK.

This year’s launch also included a special tribute to late ‘Strictly’ presenter Bruce Forsyth, who died last month at the age of 89, as well as the introduction of new Head Judge, Shirley Ballas.

The 15 couples will hit the dance floor together for the first time on Saturday 23 September on BBC One.