Strictly Come Dancing couple Janette and Aljaž are having a baby (Picture: WireImage)
Strictly Come Dancing star Janette Manrara is pregnant and expecting her first baby with her co-star husband Aljaž Škorjanec.
The professional dancers, who both starred on the BBC One competition, confirmed the joyful news on Sunday after learning Janette, 39, was pregnant in December.
It was a huge and welcome surprise for the couple who were just about to start IVF treatment after struggling to conceive for two years, before the pregnancy happened on its own.
They are now expecting their bundle of joy this summer.
Speaking of their exciting news, Janette said: ‘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.’
She added to Hello! Magazine: ‘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.
The dancers were just about to start IVF treatment when Janette discovered she was already pregnant (Picture: Getty Images)
The pair have been married since 2017 (Picture: Getty Images)
‘I think the baby decided to make mum and dad panic a bit before saying, “ok, fine, I’m coming up now”.’
Aljaž, 33, said he was ‘beside myself’ during their 12-week scan as they had ‘mentally and physically’ prepared to go down the IVF route.
‘I have so much respect for any parent that goes through IVF, not just for what it puts them through physically but mentally too,’ he said.
The loved-up couple are now preparing to put down roots for their growing family and are leaving their London flat to move to Cheshire, where they will be near their friends Gorka Marquez and Gemma Atkinson, who Aljaz was partnered with on Strictly in 2017, and who are expecting their second child.
The dancers, who tied the knot in 2017, have been stalwarts of Strcitly for many years now, with Janette switching to a presenting role in 2021, replacing Zoe Ball in the line-up for companion show It Takes Two, and Aljaž quitting the main series last year.
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They were due to start IVF when they learned Janette was already pregnant.
