Ant and Dec renew ITV deal
Popular TV presenting duo Ant and Dec have renewed their contract with ITV.
The faces of I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! Have signed exclusively to the channel.
It’s thought that the three-year deal could be worth around €3m each.
Today Anthony McPartlin, 28, said: “We are thrilled to be extending our relationship with ITV.
“They have given us the opportunity to create and work on some of the best entertainment shows around.”
Declan Donnelly, who celebrates his 29th birthday tomorrow, added: “We’re really buzzing and looking forward to further runs of our existing shows, as well as creating new and exciting projects with ITV over the next three years.”
Ant and Dec are set to return with a fourth series of Saturday Night Takeaway and a fourth series of I’m A Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!
During the last three years, the pair, who met on kids’ TV series Byker Grove, have won seven National Television Awards.
ITV’s Director of Programmes Nigel Pickard said: “Ant and Dec are an enormous asset to ITV and we’re thrilled to extend our partnership with them.
“They have a unique appeal to our audience and are loved by everyone from kids to grannies.
“They are immensely talented presenters who really do get better with every series. And as everyone who meets or works with them knows, they’re also incredibly nice guys.”
ITV’s Controller of Entertainment Claudia Rosencrantz said: “The last four years have allowed us to build some great shows with Ant and Dec.
“They have become synonymous with the channel and I’m really pleased they still feel so at home with us.
“We have a terrific working relationship and we’re all very excited about the next three years”.
The pair were reported to be at the centre of a bidding war, with their contracts expiring at the end of the year, but a spokesman for the duo said: “They never got to that stage in negotiations with the BBC. They’ve been happy with ITV.”
Ant and Dec, who joined ITV in 1998 presenting the Saturday morning show SMTV, are appearing on Saturday’s edition of Parkinson where they will be discussing their future.
