Why Ant McPartlin’s court date was postponed

He was due to appear at Wimbledon Magistrates' Court on April 4th

Ant McPartlin

by Carl Smith |
Published on

Ant McPartlin was due to appear in court today (April 4th) charged with drink driving, though the hearing was postponed by two weeks with court officials commenting: "An adjournment has been agreed and a new date of hearing has been set for Monday 16th April."

While Wimbledon Magistrates' Court declined to comment further on the reason behind the adjournment, it has now been claimed the Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway host's hearing was pushed back due to his 'intensive' stint in rehab.

Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly
©Facebook/Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway

Speaking to The Sun, a source said: "Court officials agreed to push the court date back because Ant is in intensive rehab right now. They're mindful of his personal problems and accept that he is taking pro-active steps to deal with those issues, which is a positive thing."

Ant was charged with drink driving on March 21st, with a statement from the Metropolitan Police reading: 'A man has been charged following a road traffic collision in Lower Richmond Road, SW14 that occurred on Sunday, 18 March.

'Anthony McPartlin, 42 (18.11.75) of Chiswick has been charged by postal requisition on Wednesday, 21 March with drink driving. He will appear at Wimbledon Magistrates' Court on 4 April.'

BELOW: Ant and Dec's complete career timeline...

Gallery

Ant and Dec career timeline

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CREDIT: Wenn

And & Dec: Early career

Ant & Dec as PJ and DuncanIn 1989 Dec landed a part on BBC children's drama Byker Grove, playing Duncan. A year later Ant was cast as PJ – PJ and Duncan was born.Another career change for the boys came in 1994, when they began as co-presenters of children's show Gimme 5 on CITV. Just a year later they landed their own programme, The Ant & Dec Show, this time on CBBC.

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CREDIT: Shutterstock

And & Dec: Early career

Ant & Dec became popstarsIt wasn't just acting for the boys: PJ & Duncan were pop stars for a while, and became best known for their 1994 UK top 10 Let's Get Ready to Rhumble.Their last studio album, The Cult of Ant and Dec, was released in 1997, managing to chart at number 15.

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CREDIT: Rex

And & Dec: Early career

Ant & Dec hosted SMTV and CD with Cat DeeleyThis kicked off their kids' TV careers, and landed them their first BAFTA Awards.After various other presenting gigs, Ant & Dec started hosting ITV's Saturday morning shows SMTV and CD , alongside Cat Deeley, in 1998.But, in 2001, they made the move from Saturday morning to prime time – for a little show called Pop Idol…

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CREDIT: Pop Idol

Ant & Dec: Primetime career

They hit the prime time with talent show Pop IdolThey presented Pop Idol for two years, before it replaced with The X Factor and Kate Thornton took over.This gave them the opportunity to create and present Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway, which is about begin its 13th series.In 2002, a year after Saturday Night Takeaway's debut, the boys joined I'm a Celebrity and have become huge parts of the show.

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CREDIT: Instagram

Ant & Dec: Britain's Got Talent

Establishing themselves as the busiest presenters in the country, Ant & Dec signed up for Britain's Got Talent in 2006 – and a year later signed a two-year golden handcuffs deal with ITV, which was thought to be worth £40 million.They have been hosting the show ever since, and are currently filming for the twelfth series of the show.

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CREDIT: Instagram

Ant & Dec: Awards

Among their numerous gongs, Ant & Dec have received the National Television Award for Most Popular Entertainment/TV Presenter for 15 years running. Most recently, at the 2018 NTAs, the duo won Best Presenter.

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CREDIT: Shutterstock

Ant & Dec: Friendship

Ant previously revealed his friendship with Dec started in 1990, when he sent him a Christmas card and invited him to a football match.He said: "And that was that. It just happened immediately. We clicked. We'd spend all day making each other laugh and annoying everyone and quoting Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer lines to each other."When their parts were written out of Byker Grove, the boys vowed to stick together. Dec told Weekend magazine: "We made a pact. We said to each other, 'Look, whatever happens, I'll always be there for you and you're never in this life on your own or against the world – you've always got a mate looking out for you."Even though they work together, Ant & Dec make sure they go out together at least once a week – and even live three doors apart in London!Dec said: "It's our choice to socialise outside work. And we both get to go to work with our best mate every day. And that keeps our feet on the ground."Ant added: "We love each other, definitely."

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CREDIT: Shutterstock

Ant & Dec: Relationships

In 2015 Dec married his longtime manager Ali Astall and Ant was, of course, best man. And in July 2006, Dec acted as best man at Ant's wedding to make-up artist Lisa Armstrong. Ant and Lisa, however, filed for divorce this month after 11 years of marriage.

This all comes after ITV released a statement explaining Ant has stepped down from presenting duties for the 'foreseeable' future. A source told The Sun: "He won't be pushed into returning too soon. Many people feel that he may have been a bit quick to come back after his problems last year.

"This time everyone is determined that he takes all the time he needs to deal with things properly."

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