TV favourite Rachel Riley has given birth to a baby girl.
Noa is her second daughter with her second husband Pasha Kovalev, who she met dancing on Strictly Come Dancing in 2013.
The Countdown star was alleged to have fallen to the famous ‘strictly curse’, which has seen a number of previous long-term relationships and marriages break down, due to celebs re-coupling.
But Rachel has since insisted that her marriage was already breaking down, announcing the split from her first husband just one month after the show ended, while her and Pasha finally got together in 2014.
Fans of the pair will be delighted by the news of their new healthy baby.
They regularly share pictures of their cosy home life.
(Image: Instagram)
Marriages and daughters
Rachel met her first husband, millionaire Jamie Gilbert, at Oxford University.
They reportedly split in 2009 after four years together, first coupling up at the age of just 19.
They rekindled their romance and married in 2012, but their union only lasted 16 months.
Rachel said of her ex: “I’m still friends with my ex-husband. He’s great, he’s a brilliant guy.
“We were together since I was 19 and it wasn’t right.”
(Image: WENN)
She then moved on to Pasha, the two confirming their relationship in 2014, later marrying in Las Vegas in 2019.
Upon their marriage in June that year, Riley wrote: “Introducing the new Mr and Mrs Kovalev. We both said yes!”
They had already announced they were expecting their first child together in May and Maven was born in December.
She also said of her husband : “He’s gorgeous, he’s amazing when you need a bit of support that’s when you know you’re with the nice person. He’s a good egg.”
It wasn’t long before the baby bump appeared once again and a happy Rachel and Pasha have now welcomed Noa to the world and their London home.
Early life and career
Rachel became best known as the one of the faces of the popular daytime TV show Countdown, replacing Carol Vordeman on the numbers.
She also takes part in the comedy spinoff 8 Out of 10 Cats Does countdown.
(Image: PA)
The maths whizz, now 35, joined the show in 2009, reportedly beating over 1,000 applicants to the role.
From there she got into presenting and became known for her work on The Gadget Show from 2013-2014 and then Sky Sports’ Friday Night Football and Fantasy Football Club alongside Jeff Stelling and Paul Merson in 2016.
She quit in 2017 after electing not to renew her 12-month deal, stepping down after “hideous” online abuse.
The Manchester United fan, born in Essex, has also spoken out about her Jewish heritage and has been vocal in her dislike of Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of the Labour Party and the handling of antisemitism.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
