Ant and Dec lift lid on ‘really sad’ last ever Saturday Night Takeaway and reveal reason for resting show after 20 years
ANT and Dec have lifted the lid on their “really sad but fun” final season of Saturday Night Takeaway after 22 years on screen.
After scooping up yet another TV Presenter Award at the National Television Awards last night, the presenting duo spoke exclusively to The Sun, revealing what they have in store for the final series of SNT.
Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly, both 47, have been presenting the ITV variety show since 2002, and it’s definitely been a labour of love.
However, after 20 seasons, the pair are closing the door on the beloved show after an extended break in 2023.
Their plan is for SNT to go out with a bang in 2024, meaning viewers should expect the unexpected and all manner of celebrity guests.
“We want it to be the biggest send-off so we’re resting it for a while so everyone we haven’t managed to get on in the last few years we’re going to try to get on,” Ant told The Sun.
He continued: “It’s a massive celebration of the last 20 years as it’s been 20 years.”
However, he added: “It’s going to be really sad at the end of it but we’re going to have fun until the final episode.”
Without giving anything away, Ant also confirmed that the show will have an impressive line-up of celebs joining them.”
“We always get [the guests we want] on in the end,” he said.
“Sometimes it takes us a little while, and it’s not that they don’t want to do the show. It’s just diaries and stuff, so we have got in there quite early,” Dec chimed in.
“We’ve got brand new stuff and we want to go out on a high,” he added, before teasing, “I’m not giving you any names, all of the above.”
Above all, the final season will be a tribute to and a celebration of their lifelong friendship.
“We’re friends first and foremost and the TV shows come after that. At the heart of it when you’re watching, it’s always true friendship,” Ant said.
“Ours is a career built in friendship, not a friendship built in career,” Dec added proudly.
While Ant gushed: “We met at 13 and we’ve grown like any friends do, we know everything about each other and yes, we love each other.”
The presenting duo celebrated their friendship again last night at the NTAs when they won the TV Presenter award for the 22nd time since their first win in 2001.
“We were as shocked as anybody that year when that came out, we’d only been doing prime time for about 2 years at that point. I think it’s because we’d have three massive shows in prime time in one year,” Dec told The Sun.
The pair also scooped up The Bruce Forsyth Entertainment Award last night, bringing their total NTA career wins to an incredible 45.
The pair were thrilled with their achievement last night, calling it “wonderful.”
However, Ant and Dec admitted on stage last night that they were more nervous than ever this year.
“The whole pressure thing, the pressure gets worse and worse every year,” Ant last told The Sun.
However, it never stops being a very special achievement for the presenting duo, who also paid a lovely tribute to their competition in the TV Presenter category last night.
“I think everyone in the category is deserving of it and that’s why they’re up there, so it would be difficult and very unprofessional of us to single anybody out. But everybody up there has had a fantastic year. Any one of them could have won it,” Dec concluded.