The 38-year-old Strictly star was just 17 when her dad David died of a heart attack at the age of 52.
Taking to Instagram towards the end of the week, soon-to-be mum-of-two Gemma revealed she’d visited David in hospital just a few hours before he died and even shared a Mars bar with him.
Describing how she felt when her mum called her just hours later to tell her the tragic news, Gemma, who is expecting her second child with Strictly pro Gorka Marquez, said her ‘world shattered’.
Alongside a photo of herself and her dad, Gemma wrote: ‘21 years ago today I sat by your hospital bed sharing a Mars bar & laughing.
‘You were due to come home the following day. I gave you a kiss, said I’d see you tomorrow and left.’
The doting mum added: ‘A few hours later the hospital rang mum to tell her you had passed away. A heart attack in I your sleep. My world shattered then and there. Completely broken.
‘Although my life is pretty amazing now, there’s still that void that you left. There always will be, because I imagined you’d be here forever.
‘To at least meet your grandchildren & one day walk me down the aisle. Having to remember you longer than I had you here is a weird feeling, but I’m always grateful & thankful for the wonderful 17 yrs I had you in my life Dad.’
Gemma concluded: ‘17 yrs of feeling safe, loved, protected & happy. The best dad in every way. Today we miss you more than most, but we can sit and laugh talking now about you, and I know you’re regularly ear wigging and watching us all too.
‘I feel it often and it’s always a comfort.’
In happier news, Gemma and Gorka, 32, announced three months ago that they were expecting their second child together, a baby boy.
They already share three-year-old daughter Mia and first told fans about their forthcoming arrival on social media.
Gemma wrote at the beginning of the year: ‘Impossible to hide my belly any longer. I’ve officially “popped”. Our baby boy will be joining our family later this year.’
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