Janette Manrara has shared a special message to her and Aljaz Skorjanec’s niece as she celebrates her birthday. The couple often share family updates and offer glimpses of what their life is like outside of ballrooms and Strictly Come Dancing.
Posting a picture to Instagram, a joint post from the couple was captioned: “Our little Slovenian princess Zala is 7! Cannot wait to give you a BIG cuddle and celebrate together! We love you!” Former Strictly pro Janette has always shared a close bond with her niece.
In 2019, one-year-old baby niece Zala, was pictured wearing a red tutu and white T-shirt while lying on the floor. The message accompanying the image read: “Dear auntie Janette. Miss you soo much. Good luck for an amazing weekend on SCD. Your Zala.”
Janette turned to presenting after leaving Strictly Come Dancing. In 2021, it was announced she would become the new presenter of Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two, taking over from Zoe Ball.
Janette worked as a professional dancer on the show with her husband. The two met in 2010 at a dance studio in London and worked on the dance show ‘Burn the Floor’ together. The dancers tied the knot in 2017 after seven years together.
Janette and Aljaz have one daughter together, daughter Lyra. The presenter welcomed daughter Lyra back in July 2023. She spoke about the relationship she has with her daughter and partner earlier this year.
The dancer was touring as part of the cast of the hit musical Chicago. While on tour, the dancer revealed she was feeling “scared” over the prospect of being away from her child. She showed off her singing and dancing talents as she took on the role of Roxie Hart in Chicago.
In an emotional Instagram story posted by Janette before heading out on tour, Janette wiped tears away from her eyes after having already said goodbye to her family. The dancer said: “Hi gang. Just said my goodbyes to Aljaz and Lyra, and I won’t see them for two weeks now but sharing is good because it makes us all feel better.
“And I miss them a lot. It’s the longest I’ll be away from Lyra so just starting to count down to the day I see her again. But in the meantime, I’m gonna stay strong and know that mommy is making her proud.
“And she is gonna have the best time with her cousins and her nan in Slovenia. Anyways, to all the parents that have to say goodbye to their kids for work or for whatever reason, it’s always tough but we’ve got this! We’ve got it.”
Aljaz is still a dancer on Strictly, He originally joined Strictly in 2013 and was part of the professional line-up up to 2021, he returned to the show last year.
The family released a short film about their family life in March, Janette added that the film means a lot to the couple and they had been nervous about releasing it.
They said: “We are hoping us sharing our reality will give some support to parents out there who need a reminder that there is no one way system to raising a child, and that we are all doing our best.”