Ant McPartlin's Biography

Who is Ant McPartlin?

Better known as Ant in Ant & Dec, McPartlin's first television appearance was on the children's series Why Don't You?

A major breakthrough in Ant's career came in 1990 with the role of PJ in Geordie children's drama Byker Grove, where he met Declan Donnelly.

Ant and Dec got together and recording under their Byker Grove names PJ & Duncan, they released their single, Tonight I'm Free. Their first big hit was Let's Get Ready To Rhumble which led to their debut appearance on Top of the Pops in 1994.

In 2013, Ant & Dec re-released Let's Get Ready to Rhumble and it went to number one.

Their first foray into presenting was the Ant & Dec Show on BBC1 in 1995-6. it was followed in the late eighties by the highly successful SM:TV Live and CD:UK.

As their popularity increased Ant & Dec's presenting roles diversified to include the likes of ITV's Pop Idol and Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway, as well as I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here.

Ant & Dec have been nominated for and won numerous television awards.

Interviewed at The British Comedy Awards 2005 Ant & Dec agreed that their favourite comedy performers were Morecambe and Wise and that their favourite comedy scene of 2005 was Les Dennis naked in Extras.

Ant and Dec's first venture onto the big screen, Alien Autopsy, opened in the UK in April 2006.

Another Ant & Dec TV venture was ITV's PokerFace, a game show based around bluffing.

On 22 July 2006, Anthony McPartlin married make-up artist Lisa Armstrong at a ceremony in Buckinghamshire. Lisa, who was 29, used to be a singer in Deuce and she met Ant at a roadshow in Newcastle back in the mid 1990s.

In 2009 Ant & Dec published their autobiography, Ooh! What a Lovely Pair.

In January 2011, Ant and Dec were voted the best entertainment presenters at the National Television Awards for the 10th consecutive year.

In September 2011, Ant & Dec hosted the ITV series Red Or Black.

In 2016 Ant & Dec were awarded OBEs for services to broadcasting and entertainment.

In the same year they signed a new three year contract with ITV.

In June 2017, Ant entered rehab for his alcohol and prescription painkillers addictions which followed a knee operation in 2015.

In January 2018, it was confirmed that Ant McPartlin and Lisa Armstrong were getting divorced, having been married for 11 years.

In March 2018, he was arrested on suspicion of drink-driving after a collision involving three vehicles. He pleaded guilty.

Subsequently, he went into rehab, and in August 2018 announced that he and Dec had postponed 2019's Saturday Night Takeaway, and that Dec would present I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here! alone.

He resumed work in January 2019.

In October 2019, ITV announced that they had commissioned a two-part series Ant & Dec's DNA Journey.

Subsequent popular programmes included Ant & Dec's Limitless Win.