Ant McPartlin

Last updated

Ant McPartlin
OBE
Anthony McPartlin (of Ant and Dec).jpg
McPartlin in 2014
Born
Anthony David McPartlin

(1975-11-18) 18 November 1975 (age 48)
Occupations
  • Television presenter
  • actor
  • former singer
  • comedian
Years active1987–present
Spouse
(m. 2006;div. 2018)
Anne-Marie Corbett
(m. 2021)
Children1
Signature
Ant McPartlin signature.svg

Anthony David McPartlin OBE (born 18 November 1975) is an English television presenter, former singer, rapper and actor. He is best known for working alongside Dec Donnelly as part of the presenting duo Ant & Dec.

Contents

McPartlin came to prominence, alongside Donnelly, in the children's drama series Byker Grove , with both of the boys establishing successful careers as television presenters, in which they presented SMTV Live (between 1998 and 2001), I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! and Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway (2002–2024), and Britain's Got Talent (since 2007).

Other notable highlights of McPartlin's career alongside Donnelly include presenting PokerFace , Push the Button , Pop Idol , and Red or Black? , being hosts of charity appeal Text Santa (between 2011 and 2014), and also performing as pop music duo PJ & Duncan.

Career

McPartlin at the 62nd British Academy Film Awards, April 2009 Anthony McPartlin (2009).jpg
McPartlin at the 62nd British Academy Film Awards, April 2009

McPartlin's first appearance on television was on the children's workshop programme Why Don't You? , [3] but his big break came when he rose to prominence playing the character of PJ in the CBBC series Byker Grove . It was during his time on the programme that he first met Declan Donnelly, who was cast in the part of Duncan. The pair formed a close friendship on the programme, both socially and professionally, with the men performing as their characters until their departure from the programme in 1993. During their tenure, the pair created a number of hit records under the label of "PJ & Duncan AKA", including the song "Tonight I'm Free" that had been performed on Byker Grove. [4]

From then onwards, McPartlin and Donnelly worked together on television, creating the presenting duo of Ant & Dec. Initially, the pair continued to work in children's television with the Saturday morning hit SMTV Live , before they eventually branched out into gameshows – Friends Like These , PokerFace and Push the Button – along with talent shows – Pop Idol , and Britain's Got Talent – and entertainment programmes – I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! , and Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway . The pair continued to maintain work in acting, starring in a tribute to The Likely Lads , in the form of a remake of an episode from the show's sequel Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? entitled "No Hiding Place". [5] In 2006, McPartlin and Donnelly starred together in the film Alien Autopsy .

In 2007, it was discovered that two shows, Ant & Dec's Gameshow Marathon and Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway, which he co-presented with Donnelly, had defrauded viewers participating in phone-ins. The latter was produced by the pair's own production company.[ citation needed ]

In April 2009, Ant & Dec achieved wide international exposure when, as backstage commentators for Britain's Got Talent , they interviewed contestant Susan Boyle, whose audition would become the most-viewed YouTube video of the year and whose record album topped sales charts in dozens of countries.[ citation needed ]

Personal life

On 22 July 2006, McPartlin married his longtime girlfriend, make-up artist Lisa Armstrong at Cliveden, a country house hotel in Buckinghamshire. [6] The couple were married for 11 years before eventually announcing on 15 January 2018 that they were divorcing. [7] [8]

McPartlin was a fervent Labour Party supporter until the 2010 election, when he voted for the Conservative Party. In February 2013, he told The Guardian newspaper that he would struggle to justify voting for either political party in the future. [9]

In 2015, McPartlin went into hospital for an operation to treat his knee and was advised to take prescription drugs to combat pain after the surgery was botched. Over the course of the following two years, he slowly became addicted to codeine & prescription drugs (one of which being the opioid OxyContin [10] ) along with alcohol, including use before television appearances.

In June 2017, he sought treatment for his addiction to prescription drugs and checked himself in for rehabilitation; [11] he was released two months later.

On 18 March 2018 McPartlin was involved in a road traffic collision in London, after which he was arrested on suspicion of drink-driving. The following day, on 19 March, he met with Donnelly and ITV and suspended further presenting duties to return to rehab for further treatment. [12] [13] On 16 April 2018, he was interviewed under caution and subsequently charged with drink-driving. [14] McPartlin pleaded guilty to the offence at Wimbledon Magistrates' Court the following month, and was banned from driving for 20 months [15] and fined £86,000, Britain's highest-ever penalty for drink-driving. [16] He had previously been banned from driving for 30 days and fined £350 for driving at 127 mph (204 km/h) on the A1(M) motorway. [17]

In August 2018 McPartlin announced he would be taking a break from television presenting duties until 2019, saying: "My recovery is going very well and for that to continue having spoken to Dec and ITV, I have made the decision to take the rest of the year off." [18] [19]

In January 2019, McPartlin returned to his television duties alongside Donnelly at the Britain's Got Talent auditions. [20]

On 7 August 2021, McPartlin married Anne-Marie Corbett, who was formerly his personal assistant, at St Michael's Church in Heckfield, Hampshire. They had been in a relationship since 2018. [21] On 14 May 2024, Corbett gave birth to a baby boy. [22]

Charity

McPartlin and Donnelly are patrons of the charity Sunshine Fund. When their single "Let's Get Ready to Rhumble" reached No.1, Ant & Dec donated the single's success to the charity ChildLine. They also support the Text Santa appeal.

They opened the W4 Youth Centre in 2013. [23]

Earnings

In 2007, McPartlin, with his partner, Donnelly, signed a £30 million two-and-a-half-year contract with ITV. [24]

Honours and awards

McPartlin was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2016 Birthday Honours for his services to broadcasting and entertainment. [25]

The following listed below are the television awards that McPartlin has been nominated for or awarded with, primarily while working alongside Declan Donnelly as Ant & Dec:

National Television Awards

YearAwardShow
2001Most Popular Entertainment Presenter
2002Most Popular Entertainment Presenter
Most Popular Entertainment Programme Pop Idol
Special Recognition Award
2003 [31] Most Popular Entertainment Presenter
Most Popular Entertainment ProgrammeAnt & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway
Most Popular Reality ProgrammeI'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!
2004Most Popular Entertainment Presenter
Most Popular Entertainment ProgrammeAnt & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway
2005Most Popular Entertainment Presenter
2006 [32] Most Popular Entertainment Presenter
Most Popular Quiz Programme Ant & Dec's Gameshow Marathon
2007Most Popular Entertainment Presenter
Most Popular Entertainment ProgrammeAnt & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway
Most Popular Reality ProgrammeI'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!
2008 [33] Most Popular Entertainment Presenter
2010Most Popular Entertainment Presenter
Most Popular Entertainment ProgrammeAnt & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway
2011Most Popular Entertainment Presenter
Most Popular Entertainment ProgrammeI'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!
2012Most Popular Entertainment Presenter
Most Popular Reality ProgrammeI'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!
2013Most Popular Entertainment Presenter
Most Popular Entertainment ProgrammeI'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!
2014Most Popular Entertainment Presenter
Most Popular Entertainment ProgrammeI'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!
Landmark Award
2015Most Popular Entertainment Presenter
Most Popular Entertainment ProgrammeI'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!
2016Most Popular Entertainment ProgrammeI'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!
Most Popular TV Presenter
2017Most Popular Entertainment ProgrammeAnt & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway
Most Popular TV Presenter
Challenge ShowI'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!
2018The Bruce Forsyth Entertainment AwardAnt & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway
Most Popular TV Presenter
Challenge ShowI'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!
2019The Bruce Forsyth Entertainment AwardI'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!
Most Popular TV Presenter
2020The Bruce Forsyth Entertainment AwardI'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!
Most Popular TV Presenter
2021The Bruce Forsyth Entertainment AwardI'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!
Most Popular TV Presenter

Filmography

Television

YearTitleRole
1990–1993, 2000 Byker Grove PJ
1994 Gimme 5 Guest presenter
1995–1997The Ant & Dec ShowCo-Presenter
The Big Breakfast Guest presenter
1997Ant and Dec's Geordie Christmas [34] Co-Presenter
1998Ant & Dec Unzipped
1998–2001 SMTV Live
CD:UK
1999–2001 Friends Like These
2001 Slap Bang with Ant & Dec
2001–2003 Pop Idol
2001, 2015–2016 BRIT Awards
2002 A Tribute to the Likely Lads Terry Collier
2002–2004 Engie Benjy Jollop and Trucker Troy (voice)
2002–2009, 2013–2018, 2020–2024 Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway Co-Presenter
2002–2017, 2019– I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!
2005 Ant & Dec's Gameshow Marathon
2006A History of Tyneside
2006–2007 PokerFace
2006, 2008 Soccer Aid
2007–present Britain's Got Talent
2008 Wanna Bet?
2009Ant & Dec's Christmas Show
2010–2011 Ant & Dec's Push the Button
2011–2012 Red or Black?
2011–2014 Text Santa
2016When Ant and Dec Met The Prince: 40 Years of The Prince's Trust
The Queen's 90th Birthday Celebration
2019 Britain's Got Talent: The Champions
Ant & Dec's DNA Journey Himself
2022– Limitless Win Co-Presenter

Film

YearTitleRole
2003 Love, Actually Himself
2006 Alien Autopsy Gary Shoefield
2013 One Chance Himself (archive footage)

Television advertisements

YearTitleRole
2000 Wispa BiteHimself
2001 Ambrosia Splat Himself, voice only
Woolworths Himself
2002 McDonald's Himself, voice only
2008 Sainsbury's Himself
2010–2011 Wii & Nintendo DS
2013–2015 Morrisons
2016–2018 Suzuki
2019–2020 Marks & Spencer
2019–present Santander UK

Apps

Related Research Articles

<i>Byker Grove</i> British childrens television series (1989–2006)

Byker Grove is a British teen drama and coming of age television series which aired between 1989 and 2006 as part of CBBC on BBC One.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ant & Dec</span> British television presenting duo

Ant & Dec is a British television presenting duo consisting of Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly from Newcastle upon Tyne. Formed after them meeting as child actors on CBBC's drama Byker Grove, they performed together as pop musicians PJ & Duncan, the names of their characters from the series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Declan Donnelly</span> British television presenter (born 1975)

Declan Joseph Oliver Donnelly is a British television presenter, television producer, former singer, rapper, comedian and actor from Newcastle upon Tyne, England. He is best known for working alongside Ant McPartlin as part of the presenting duo Ant & Dec.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Comedy Awards</span> British awards ceremony

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<i>SMTV Live</i> Saturday Morning Kids Programme

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Matthew Robinson is a British-Cambodian television and film executive producer, producer, director and writer. After graduating from Cambridge University. he directed many episodes of popular British television dramas and soap operas in the 1970s and 1980s. He became the first producer of the series Byker Grove (1989–1997), and was also made the executive producer of EastEnders (1998–2000).

Engie Benjy is a British stop motion animated pre-school children's television show, broadcast on ITV's children's strand, CITV. Engie Benjy is a blue-haired mechanic who fixes problems with the help of his friends and an assortment of living magic and vehicles. He owns a dog named Jollop and drives a breakdown van named Dan the Van. Other characters include Driver Dottie, Astronaut Al and Farmer Fred. The vehicles included in the show are Dan the Breakdown Van, Bus, Bike, Plane, Spaceship, Boat, Tractor and Big Rig the Truck.

<i>Britains Got Talent</i> Televised British talent competition

Britain's Got Talent is a televised British talent show competition, and part of the global Got Talent franchise created by Simon Cowell. Presented by Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly, it is produced by both Thames and Syco Entertainment, distributed by Fremantle, and broadcast on ITV every year in late Spring to early Summer. The show was originally intended for production in 2005, but filming was suspended in the wake of a dispute between ITV and the programme's originally planned host. Following the success of America's Got Talent that year, production resumed and the programme eventually premiered on 9 June 2007.

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<i>Im a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!</i> (British TV series) British reality television series

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<i>Britains Got Talent</i> series 1 Season of television series

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Lisa Marie Armstrong is a former member of pop band Deuce and was make-up expert for the ITV programme This Morning, until becoming make-up supervisor for the ITV quiz show Pick Me and its prime-time entertainment series Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway.

<i>Ant & Decs Saturday Night Takeaway</i> British television variety show

Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway is a British television variety show, presented by Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly, which was broadcast on ITV from 8 June 2002 to 21 March 2009, and again after a 4-year hiatus from 23 February 2013 to 13 April 2024, after which the show went on another indefinite hiatus.

Zenith Productions was a British independent film and television production company. Zenith created content for the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Sky and UKTV, including a number of series such as Inspector Morse for ITV and Byker Grove and Hamish Macbeth for the BBC. Through its subsidiary Blaze Television, Zenith produced the Saturday morning series SMTV Live and CD:UK for ITV featuring Ant & Dec. The company ceased trading in 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scarlett Moffatt</span> British reality television personality and presenter (born 1990)

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References

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Notes