Presenter seeks help after drink drive arrest
ANT MCPARTLIN, the ITV presenter, has stepped down from television work after being arrested on suspicion of drink driving, as Saturday Night Takeaway is pulled from air this weekend.
Mcpartlin, part of broadcasting duo Ant and Dec, is to return to treatment for addiction issues, taking a break from work at ITV after consulting with Declan Donnelly, his on-screen partner.
On Sunday afternoon, 42-year-old Mcpartlin was questioned by police on suspicion of drink-driving over a car crash that resulted in a three-year-old being taken to hospital.
It follows a difficult year for the broadcaster, who spent time in rehab for an addiction to painkillers and confirmed in January that he and his wife Lisa were separating after 11 years of marriage. After news and photographs of a three-car crash in London emerged, ITV announced it was cancelling this weekend’s Saturday Night Takeaway, as Mcpartlin seeks help.
The presenter’s spokesman said in a statement: “Ant has decided to go back into treatment and step down from his current TV commitments.
“He has spoken with Dec and ITV today and asked for time off for the foreseeable future. As such Saturday Night Takeaway will not be going ahead this Saturday.”
ITV added: “ITV has taken a joint decision with Ant and Dec’s team not to broadcast Saturday Night Takeaway this weekend. We will be reviewing options for the last two episodes of the series (March 31 and April 7), which would not feature Ant who is taking time off to seek treatment. We very much hope that he gets the help that he needs.”
The broadcaster has been released under investigation following his arrest on suspicion of drink-driving on Sunday.
He was involved in a collision with two other cars while he was driving his Mini in Mortlake, south-west London, and was arrested at around 4pm after failing a roadside breathalyser test.
He is reported to have been returning home after walking his dogs, with his mother in the car.
Witnesses described seeing Mcpartlin’s black Mini collide with a green Mini and a maroon BMW in succession, before he emerged appearing shaken.
Police confirmed that a number of individuals were treated at the scene for minor injuries, and a child passenger from one of the cars was taken to hospital to be checked as a precaution.
The family involved in the crash were last night named as Faheem Vanoo, a restaurant owner, and his wife, Shilpa Dandekar, a chef, who were travelling in their Mini with their young daughter. Mr Vanoo, 41, said: “The whole experience has just been a nightmare. It has left us all a bit shaken up.”
A Metropolitan Police spokesman said a 42-year-old man was “taken to a south London police station for questioning and has since been released under investigation.”
Inquiries continue, she added. This is the latest in a string of personal setbacks for the star, who works as “Ant and Dec” with Donnelly.
Mcpartlin entered rehab last year after struggling with an addiction to painkillers following a knee operation in 2015.
Mcpartlin was yesterday inundated with messages from fans wishing him well. If charged with a drink-driving offence, and found guilty, he could receive up to six months’ imprisonment, a driving ban or fine.
‘Ant has decided to go back into treatment and step down from his current TV commitments’