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The touching reason Oti Mabuse didn't appear with Kelvin Fletcher on This Morning

The former Emmerdale star made a solo appearance on This Morning

kelvin fletcher oti mabuse
Jenni McKnight
US Lifestyle Editor
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This Morning viewers were left confused by Strictly Come Dancing star Kelvin Fletcher's solo appearance on the famous sofa on Thursday morning. But there was a very touching reason his pro partner Oti Mabuse left him to his own devices – it was her final morning with her mum. The 29-year-old has been enjoying some quality time with her mum and godmother since Kelvin surprised her by flying them over from South Africa one week early – and on Thursday it was finally time for her to say goodbye. Admitting it was an emotional farewell, Oti posted on Twitter: "Saying goodbye to my mom. Wow that was harder than I thought...." followed by a heart breaking emoji.

WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Kelvin and Oti reveal their favourite Strictly position

During her family reunion, Oti has also enjoyed a visit from her aunt, who has been staying with her. On Wednesday, Oti shared a lovely picture on Instagram of the two of them relaxing at home, and wrote alongside it: "It's been laughs all week but this morning has been special." Oti's aunt's visit follows shortly after her mum and godmother came to the UK to watch her during the Blackpool special show. Kelvin had arranged for them to come over as a surprise, much to the dancer's delight.

kelvin this morning

Oti shared this snap of Kelvin on This Morning

Oti had no idea that her mum and godmother had been watching her and Kelvin's Jive at the Blackpool Tower, and it was only after Kelvin pointed them out to her while they were walking on to the show that she realised. The pro dancer spoke about the surprise on Instagram shortly after their performance, writing: "Wow! I don’t even know where to start. Before we did our walk @kelvin_fletcher told me to look over the corner he had a Suprise for me, turns out he brought my mom and godmum to Blackpool."

MORE: Kelvin Fletcher reveals special occasion he had to miss because of Strictly Come Dancing

strictly oti mabuse special family moment

Oti has been enjoying time with her family

MORE: Strictly's Karim Zeroual makes heartbreaking revelation about his mum after his dance-off with Amy Dowden

She added: "My mum has NEVER EVER seen me dance live on Strictly before and I just broke down in tears. The last we were in Blackpool she was training me in the Blackpool championships so today was THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE!!! Not just that but his nan saw him dance for the first time too.... I’m so grateful to be dancing with such thoughtful man."

Kelvin's mum and grandmother, June, also went to watch the dancing duo perform in Blackpool, and the group enjoyed hanging out together backstage after the show. Oti shared a photo of them all on Instagram, and wrote alongside it: "Weekend full of mums.. no love is greater." The former Emmerdale actor was one of the first to comment on the sweet post, and joked: "June will be buzzing she's made your feed. She'll be getting lots of attention at bingo now."

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