Holly v Scarlett: Who will be Dec’s new Ant?
Ant McPartlin has confirmed he won’t be back on our screens until 2019 – so who’ll be Dec’s new jungle co-host?
Splitting up Ant and Dec – once that would have been like, well, gin without tonic. Yet now, it’s official. Ant and Dec are no more – for this year, at least.
Ant, 42, has announced he’s taking a break from TV, stating that he needs to give himself time to recover from his addiction issues, following his driving ban in April.
Dec, also 42, has already stepped up to host Saturday Night Takeaway solo, and now faces a trip to the Australian jungle in November without his best friend and co-host.
It’s the end of an era, really – the duo have presented the show since 2002. But it seems highly unlikely Dec will be hosting the ITV survival reality TV show alone. So who could be flying Down Under to join him, as he makes fun of half-starved celebrities munching on witchetty grubs and crocodile testicles?
Although nobody’s officially been approached, rumour has it that Ant’s replacement could be Holly Willoughby, a well-known close friend of both Ant and Dec.
If TV queen Holly did sign up for the jungle, at least Dec could bond with the star over parenting – his wife, Ali Astall, is expecting their first child together later this year.
Mum-of-three Holly, 37, has been a strong supporter of Ant over his recent troubles, and we have no doubt the producers are on the lookout for a woman who would want to be a permanent replacement.
That said, William Hill bookmakers only have Holly as 10/1 odds, with former Gogglebox star Scarlett Moffatt as the favourite at 2/1 and Stephen Mulhern at 16/1.
Personally, we hope Carol Vorderman gets a look-in. She’s only 33/1, but she was fabulous as a contestant in 2016 – from befriending all the jungle animals to rustling up a delicious quail dinner and flirting outrageously with a thensingle Joel Dommett.
If Carol, 57, could be half as entertaining and energetic a co-host as she was a campmate, she’s got our vote!
We have no doubt the producers are on the lookout for a woman to be a permanent replacement