Ashley Banjo opens up on ‘dad guilt’ at Christmas as hectic schedule keeps him away from home

Ashley Banjo has opened up about struggling with ‘dad guilt’ over the Christmas period as his busy work schedule keeps him away from home.

The Dancing On Ice judge, 36, announced in a joint statement in December 2022 that he and childhood sweetheart Francesca had made the ‘difficult decision’ to split.

The former couple, who maintain a co-parenting relationship, share daughter Rose, five, and son Micah, four.

With the holidays in full swing, Ashley shared how he’s making the most of his short break and making sure he spends quality time with his loved ones before heading back to work.

He told it The sun: ‘We generally only have Christmas Day and New Year’s Day off, so it’s become a bit of a tradition for us to literally perform, come back from whatever we’re doing, spend the day with the kids and the family and stuff, and then going back to work.”

Ashley also talked about the guilt many fathers experience when work commitments take priority over family time.

He shares daughter Rose, five, and son Micah, four, with his ex-partner Francesca

He continued, “So you pay the bills, you provide, you do what you love, you have a family, but I just think dads in general (and moms) there’s something about dads that you need money for earn. Choices matter even more, and you have to make sacrifices – and you have to decide where you want to be.

‘Sometimes being present doesn’t always mean being directly in the room. Sometimes you have a job to do. So it’s a catch 22, right? That guilt. But as far as I can be, I am absolutely there.”

Ashley and his dance group Diversity are currently performing in the pantomime Jack and the Beanstalk at the Mayflower Theater in Southampton.

The show runs from December 24, 2024 to January 5, 2025.

In an exclusive interview with MailOnline in 2023, just months after his divorce, Ashley revealed that co-parenting his two children with Francesca and ensuring their happiness is his main goal in life.

He said: ‘Ultimately for me when it comes to life my children are my priority and looking after my family and my babies and making sure they are happy and their lives are good is number one.

‘Now that they’re old enough, my kids love watching BGT performances on YouTube, they’re always on Diversity performances and they want to watch their daddy, which is super cute, and I love watching the old performances with them .’

In their joint statement, Ashley and Francesca said: “After much thought and consideration, we both feel now is the time to share some personal news.

The Diversity announced in a joint statement in December 2022 that he and childhood sweetheart Francesca had made the ‘difficult decision’ to part ways

Ashley revealed that co-parenting his two children with Francesca and ensuring their happiness is his main goal in life

‘Almost a year and a half ago we made the difficult decision to part ways. After being together for over 16 years, since we were teenagers, this is not a decision made lightly.

‘It has not been easy and the processing of the situation has not been fast at all. But we believe that as we approach the new year, it is time to share this news with others.

“Our focus will always be on our beautiful children. Every decision made is to ensure that we can continue as a loving family and give the best of ourselves as parents.

Raising Rose and Micah in a healthy and happy environment is the most important thing for both of us.

‘Sometimes people just go in a different direction after so many years, but we do that lovingly and we continue to try to be both the best parents and best friends possible for each other.

“We have always been private with our personal lives, so we kindly ask everyone to continue to respect that privacy. We will not comment further on the situation.

They concluded: ‘Thank you… Lots of love Ash and Chess x’