Dynamic duo make a welcome return
Why aye, the lads are back – and they’re promising to banish the winter blues. While we await the first glimpses of a little bit of sun to blink through the grey February clouds, we can at least trust the Geordie boys to put a smile back on our faces. For the next couple of months, they will bring their unique brand of humour to our living rooms via a new run of Ant and Dec’s Saturday NightTakeaway, Saturday, ITV, 7pm – and we’re thrilled about that. Anybody who caught their interview with Michael Grade on the BBC Four documentary The Fight for Saturday Night will be aware that they’re probably just as pleased to be back too. During the programme Grade claimed that “The TV graveyard is littered with the corpses of producers and presenters who didn’t quite cut it on Saturday night.” Even the lord of light entertainment himself, Sir Bruce Forsyth, was revealed to have struggled after leaving the BBC’s mega-hit The Generation Game for pastures new over on ITV. Ant and Dec were also among the weekend casualties – Slap Bang with Ant & Dec flopped in the summer of 2001 and was axed after just six episodes. Even Saturday Night Takeaway wasn’t an instant success, but instead its fanbase grew over time - and fans were thrilled when it returned to screens in 2013 after a four-year break. We can expect more fun and games during this new run, including some via their new game I’m a Celebrity Get Out… of Me Ear! No details have been released yet, but the title should be sending your imagination into overdrive. But don’t worry – there will be plenty of old favourites still taking place, including Ant v Dec, which is once again hosted by Ashley Roberts. We’ve seen them tackle some extraordinary challenges over the years – including one involving a motorcycle stunt that left Dec with a broken arm, fractured thumb and concussion – so goodness only knows what they’ve got cooked up this time. Hopefully they won’t be facing anything too dangerous, particularly as it’s rumoured Dec will be getting married later in the year – we wouldn’t want him to miss that just because he was busy keeping his fans occupied! To kick off the series, Olly Murs features – the duo play an undercover prank on him, and Ed Sheeran will be performing live in the studio. And if you want to see more of Ant and Dec in action, don’t forget they’re presenting the Brits on Wednesday night too.