Debbie McGee gets so emotional when thinking about her late husband she sometimes feels like she "can’t cry anymore".
The 59-year-old star still breaks down when recalling her memories with magician Paul Daniels – who died in 2016 aged 77 – but prefers to do so in private before telling herself she needs to get it together.
She said: "I’m not very good at crying in front of people so, most of the time, I can choose my moments when I recall Paul and think about him.
"That’s usually somewhere where I’m on my own, a hotel room or at home, and the floodgates open.
"I get to a point where I actually think I can’t cry anymore, and you have to say to yourself, ‘Right, pull yourself together, go and have a cup of tea.’ And you’ve got it out of your system.
"Occasionally, someone will say something and you can’t help it, you just cry. You’re emotional."
Following Paul’s passing, Debbie has immersed herself in work, such as starring on ‘Strictly Come Dancing’, and she thinks busying herself with jobs has helped her deal with her grief.
She said: "Since Paul died work has been the thing … I’ve got the closest family anyone could have, I’ve got lovely friends, but you need something else to think about.
"Sitting and talking about it with them all the time helps but you need something else to be going on in your life."
Debbie grew close to her ‘Strictly’ partner Giovanni Pernice during her time on the show and while she has insisted there were no romantic interests between the pair, she was "attracted" to his intelligence.
Speaking on ITV’s ‘Loose Women’, she added: "He really is good looking and much better looking in real life.
"He’s very charming but it really wasn’t that. I really got attracted to his brain, because I realised he really knew his job, he really thought things through. He was so interesting to talk to, and that’s why we had this great chemistry.
"Firstly, we made each other laugh, and that’s so important."
Debbie McGee’s Paul Daniels emotion
