The Newcastle-born presenters have been all over our screens for the last few weeks, in fact for YEARS now we’ve been enjoying their back-and-forth banter. We’ve taken a stroll down memory lane to tell you everything you would possibly want to know about the BFF’s…
Where are Ant and Dec from?
Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly were both raised in Newcastle’s West End in nearby council estates, but didn’t meet until they started working on Byker Grove together in 1989!
Aww, Byker Grove, forever in our hearts <3
When did And and Dec become friends?
Would you believe they didn’t like each other at first? The teens were apparently v competitive with one another. Ant even admitted on Friday Night with Jonathon Ross that he thought Dec was miserable! The rivalry didn’t last long, and when they were made to play friends on-screen their bromance began off-screen too. They then decided to start their band PJ & Duncan…
Ant and Dec's music career: PJ & Duncan take over the charts…
Their first single was Tonight I’m Free performed on Byker Grove, and it had so much success that they went on to record two more albums! The most famous hit, Let’s Get Ready to Rhumble peaked at number nine on the UK Singles Chart in 1994.
It finally went to number one almost twenty years later in 2013 after they performed it on Saturday Night Takeaway.
For their third album, the duo re-named their group to their actual names and became the Ant & Dec we know and love. Their signature single was Shout which they performed on Top of The Pops…Oh, so much nostalgia :’(
LOOK AT BABA ANT & DEC!!
Their music career came crashing down when they were embroiled in a MAJ SCANDAL upon the release of their single Falling. Another pop duo, And all because…, claimed they had stolen the song from then and released it without their consent! The song was pulled from the charts and they were dropped from their record label, Telstar Records. Alas, all was not lost… as they had already started to fulfil the roles they were MADE FOR as TV presenters.
When did Ant & Dec start on TV?
Their first presenting gig was in 1994 on a children’s show called Gimme 5, which broadcast on CITV. It only lasted two series, but in 1995 CBBC offered them their own series The Ant & Dec Show! They won two BAFTA’s for the series, Best Children’s Show and Best Sketch Comedy Show. Then, in 1998 they won another BAFTA for Ant & Dec unzipped, which was only on the air for one series! ITV soon signed and were presenting ITV1s, SMTV Live and CD
It was the most popular ITV Saturday morning show because the SHAMAZING (we can’t let go of X factor yet, sorry) chemistry between Ant, Dec and Cat. Children everywhere were inconsolable when Ant & Dec made their departure from children’s TV in 2001, in order to start filming Pop Idols live finals.
Ant & Dec go primetime
Their reign as prime time televisions best game show hosts started with Friends Like These and soon after Pop Idol. But, they were cemented as presenting royalty with Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway which has been running for thirteen series so far!
At the same time, they were called to host the show we have all come to love them for, I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! The nation mourned in 2009 when Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway was taken off air after the duo feared their content was becoming stale. Only four years later, it returned to massive success with new host Ashley Roberts. Ashley and Dec were rumoured to be dating after Ant had met her as a cast member of I’m a Celeb. Remember how cute Dec was when he so BLATES fancied her? Awww.
Their success stories continued from there, hosting Britain’s Got Talent for TEN series and Text Santa alongside a host of other celebs. They even made some more acting moves, playing themselves in Love Actually and Ray Santilli and Gary Shoefield in Alien Autopsy.
What else have Ant & Dec done? The ones they’d rather forget…
Of course, everyone has a job they push to the back of their brains at some point and Ant & Dec have had their fair share of McDonalds customer assistant roles. Remember Ant & Dec’s Push the Button? It was hailed as a new Saturday Night Takeaway but was dropped after two series to bring back the older, much better format.
Then there was Red or Black?, which also ran for two series before being cancelled. Much like PokerFace, a gambling gameshow axed in 2007. They kind of have a two series curse don’t they?
They even had a few acting mishaps, staring in a pantomime version of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, which lost £20,000- a bill they had to foot almost all of!
It doesn’t end there, there was also the gameshows that failed to even get off the ground! Wanna Bet? Was a new American gameshow that was never commissioned due to low interest. What You Wrote was also axed before it aired in 2008. THIS WAS ANT & DEC IN THEIR PRIME! Seriously, if they got rejected amidst I’m a Celeb and BGT fame, you must be able to handle the odd knock back from that fella you’re Netflix and chilling with…
When did Ant & Dec get an OBE?
In 2016, Ant & Dec were awarded OBE status by the Queen for their contributions as presenters.
Have Ant & Dec ever done anything controversial?
No comedy duo is complete without some sort of controversy at some point. Ant & Dec are no stranger to dodgy allegations, after copyright infringement mess that pushed them out of the music industry they were also accused of fraud in 2007! After allegations of defrauding phone-in viewers, they were investigated by Ofcom and you won’t believe what they found…
On Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway, the show had selected competition finalists BEFORE the phone lines closed but they ALSO selected someone known to the production team to be placed on the shortlist who then went on to WIN! They also chose finalists based on their suitability to be on TV and where they lived!
Ant & Dec apologised in 2008, insisting the fraud would never happen again.
That hasn’t stopped them from being accused of further shady behaviour though. In 2009 Kelly Brook claimed they were behind her being axed from the BGT judging panel just six days into filming! She told the MailOnline:
"There was nothing I could do in this country after Britain's Got Talent. The people at ITV were telling me that I had upset Ant and Dec and that was it. I would love to have stayed on the show. I really felt it was working out. Ant and Dec had never been anything but pleasant to my face but, clearly, they didn't want me on the show."
Ant & Dec responded to the controversy saying:
"We didn’t ask for her to be sacked. But it’s completely true we were annoyed that she’d been brought in because we hadn’t been told about it. We were angry about Kelly. But it was because no one asked our opinion. What was upsetting was that it happened in the first place. It was wrong from the start."
Ant McPartlin substance abuse
In June 2017, Ant opened up about his struggle with substance abuse. When a botched knee operation left him in chronic pain, he began taking prescription painkillers. Coupled with depression, which caused an addiction to alcohol, Ant explained that he had been struggling with substance abuse for years. At the time of writing, he is set to enter rehab for two months, with ITV standing behind him and reportedly offering him a 12 month sabbatical to give him enough time to recover.
Dec tweeted his support for his BFF saying: "Thank you for all the kind messages and well wishes for the big fella. He will be touched. Your support is, as ever, much appreciated. DD xx"
Is Ant married?
YES! Ant was the first of the comedy duo to tie the knot, marrying his long time love Lisa Armstong in 2006. They met at a concert in 1994, where they were both performing! Lisa was part of pop group Deuce, but is now a super succesful make-up artist for ITV.
Does Ant have kids?
No :( The couple revealed their struggle to have children in 2013. Telling The Mirror, Ant said:
"Lisa and I would love to have kids. We’re trying. It’s tougher than you think when you get a bit older.”
Is Dec married?
YES! Dec had a string of high profile romances over the years (Claire Buckfeild, Georgie Thompson, Ashley Roberts...), but finally settled with his long time manager Ali Astall. Despite working together for more than ten years, they didn't start dating till 2013 and then married in 2015!
Does Dec have kids?
Nada :( However, it is on the horizon! Last year, Dec told The Times:
"I guess that's just the next stage of that dynamic changing and the next stage of our lives. I'm really looking forward to that. Maybe it's because we've turned 40. That milestone is making me think of the next stage of life now"
We can't WAIT for a real life little Ant & Dec! <3
We just love TV’s best bromance
Nothing warms our hearts more than the BFFs, especially when Dec was Ants best man at his wedding tIN 2006 with Ant returning the favour for Dec in 2014. SO ADORBZ <3