Anthony McPartlin
Encyclopedia
Anthony David "Ant" McPartlin (born 18 November 1975) is one half of the English
comedy
and television presenting
duo
Ant & Dec
, with the other being Declan Donnelly
. He came to prominence in the children's drama series Byker Grove
and as one half of the pop music
duo PJ & Duncan. Since then, Ant & Dec have had a very successful career as TV presenters, presenting programmes such as SMTV Live
, Friends Like These
, Pop Idol
, Britain's Got Talent
, I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!, Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway
, PokerFace and Push the Button
. They have also returned to acting, starring in a 2002 Tribute to The Likely Lads
and the 2006 film Alien Autopsy.
but he rose to prominence playing PJ in the Children's BBC
series Byker Grove
. It was here that he first met Declan Donnelly, who was cast in the part of Duncan, and real life mirrored the programme as the two became best friends both on set and off. In the guise of "PJ & Duncan AKA
", they had a number of hit records, starting with "Tonight I'm Free", a song that they had performed on the show. The two left the series in 1993.
Since that time the pair have appeared together in such programmes as SMTV Live
, Friends Like These
, Pop Idol
, Britain's Got Talent
, I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!, Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway
, PokerFace and Push the Button
. They have also returned to acting, starring in a 2002 Tribute to The Likely Lads
and the 2006 film Alien Autopsy
.
In 2007 it was discovered that two shows, Ant & Dec's Gameshow Marathon and Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway which he co-presented with Donnelly had defrauded viewers participating in phone-ins. The latter was produced by the pair's own production company.
In April 2009, Ant & Dec achieved wide international exposure when, as backstage commentators for Britain's Got Talent
, they interviewed contestant Susan Boyle
, whose audition would become the most viewed YouTube
video of the year and whose record album topped sales charts in dozens of countries.
They have gained:
.
In 2002, McPartlin was temporarily banned from driving after being caught speeding
at 127 mph through County Durham
in his Audi TT
.
On 22 July 2006 he married longtime girlfriend and make-up artist Lisa Armstrong
at Cliveden, a hotel in Buckinghamshire. They met when they were both performing at a pop concert
at Newcastle City Hall
in 1994. McPartlin was there as part of PJ & Duncan AKA, whilst Armstrong was in the pop
band Deuce
.
On 8 March 2011 whilst watching a football match in a local pub, he was the subject of an unprovoked attack by an unknown assailant who then fled the scene.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
and television presenting
Presenter
A presenter, or host , is a person or organization responsible for running an event. A museum or university, for example, may be the presenter or host of an exhibit. Likewise, a master of ceremonies is a person that hosts or presents a show...
duo
Duo
-Arts:*Duet , a musical piece performed by two people*Duo, a musical ensemble composed of two musicians*Comedy duo, also known as a double act*Duo , 2008*Duo , 1991...
Ant & Dec
Ant & Dec
Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly , known collectively as Ant & Dec, are an English comedy and TV presenting duo from Newcastle upon Tyne, England...
, with the other being Declan Donnelly
Declan Donnelly
Declan Joseph Oliver "Dec" Donnelly is one half of the English acting and TV presenting duo Ant & Dec, with the other being Anthony McPartlin. He came to prominence in the children's drama series Byker Grove and as one half of the pop music duo PJ & Duncan...
. He came to prominence in the children's drama series Byker Grove
Byker Grove
Byker Grove was a British television series which aired between 1989 and 2006 and was created by Adele Rose. The show was broadcast at 5.10pm after Newsround on CBBC on BBC One...
and as one half of the pop music
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
duo PJ & Duncan. Since then, Ant & Dec have had a very successful career as TV presenters, presenting programmes such as SMTV Live
SMTV Live
SMTV Live , also written SM:TV Live and in early promotional material SMTV://live, was a British Saturday morning children's television programme, first broadcast on ITV on 29 August 1998 and last broadcast on 27 December 2003.On the surface, the programme did not seem to stray away from the format...
, Friends Like These
Friends Like These
Friends Like These was a British television programme broadcast on BBC One, and was presented by Ant & Dec and later by Ian Wright. The show was aired on BBC One from 6 November 1999 until 1 March 2003.-Format:...
, Pop Idol
Pop Idol
Pop Idol is a British television series which debuted on ITV on 6 October 2001. The show was a talent contest to decide the best new young pop singer in the United Kingdom, based on viewer voting and participation. Two series were broadcast - one in 2001-02 and a second in 2003...
, Britain's Got Talent
Britain's Got Talent
Britain's Got Talent is a British television talent show competition which started in June 2007 and originated from the Got Talent series. The show is produced by FremantleMedia's TalkbackThames and Simon Cowell's production company SYCOtv. The show is broadcast on ITV in Britain and TV3 in Ireland...
, I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!, Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway
Saturday Night Takeaway
Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway, is a variety show created by LWT and shown in the UK on Saturday evenings on ITV, presented and executively produced by Ant & Dec. It is broadcast live from The London Studios on the South Bank...
, PokerFace and Push the Button
Ant & Dec's Push the Button
Ant & Dec's Push the Button is a game show which first aired on the ITV Network. The show is hosted by Ant & Dec. During the show the contestants compete to win a jackpot of £100,000. The family who have banked the most cash go through to the final to face DAVE...
. They have also returned to acting, starring in a 2002 Tribute to The Likely Lads
The Likely Lads
The Likely Lads was a black-and-white British sitcom created and written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais, and produced by Dick Clement. Twenty episodes were broadcast by the BBC, in three series, between 16 December 1964 and 23 July 1966...
and the 2006 film Alien Autopsy.
Career
Ant's first appearance on television was on the children's workshop programme Why Don't You?Why Don't You?
Why Don't You? or Why Don't You Just Switch Off Your Television Set and Go Out and Do Something Less Boring Instead? was a cult BBC children's television series broadcast in 42 series between 20 August 1973 and 21 April 1995. It went out on weekday mornings during the school holidays...
but he rose to prominence playing PJ in the Children's BBC
CBBC
CBBC is one of two brand names used for the BBC's children's television strands. Between 1985 and 2002, CBBC was the name given to all the BBC's programmes on TV for children aged under 14...
series Byker Grove
Byker Grove
Byker Grove was a British television series which aired between 1989 and 2006 and was created by Adele Rose. The show was broadcast at 5.10pm after Newsround on CBBC on BBC One...
. It was here that he first met Declan Donnelly, who was cast in the part of Duncan, and real life mirrored the programme as the two became best friends both on set and off. In the guise of "PJ & Duncan AKA
PJ & Duncan discography
This is a discography of official releases by the pop duo PJ & Duncan, who were later rebranded as Ant & Dec.-Studio albums:*1994 Psyche *1995 Top Katz...
", they had a number of hit records, starting with "Tonight I'm Free", a song that they had performed on the show. The two left the series in 1993.
Since that time the pair have appeared together in such programmes as SMTV Live
SMTV Live
SMTV Live , also written SM:TV Live and in early promotional material SMTV://live, was a British Saturday morning children's television programme, first broadcast on ITV on 29 August 1998 and last broadcast on 27 December 2003.On the surface, the programme did not seem to stray away from the format...
, Friends Like These
Friends Like These
Friends Like These was a British television programme broadcast on BBC One, and was presented by Ant & Dec and later by Ian Wright. The show was aired on BBC One from 6 November 1999 until 1 March 2003.-Format:...
, Pop Idol
Pop Idol
Pop Idol is a British television series which debuted on ITV on 6 October 2001. The show was a talent contest to decide the best new young pop singer in the United Kingdom, based on viewer voting and participation. Two series were broadcast - one in 2001-02 and a second in 2003...
, Britain's Got Talent
Britain's Got Talent
Britain's Got Talent is a British television talent show competition which started in June 2007 and originated from the Got Talent series. The show is produced by FremantleMedia's TalkbackThames and Simon Cowell's production company SYCOtv. The show is broadcast on ITV in Britain and TV3 in Ireland...
, I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!, Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway
Saturday Night Takeaway
Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway, is a variety show created by LWT and shown in the UK on Saturday evenings on ITV, presented and executively produced by Ant & Dec. It is broadcast live from The London Studios on the South Bank...
, PokerFace and Push the Button
Ant & Dec's Push the Button
Ant & Dec's Push the Button is a game show which first aired on the ITV Network. The show is hosted by Ant & Dec. During the show the contestants compete to win a jackpot of £100,000. The family who have banked the most cash go through to the final to face DAVE...
. They have also returned to acting, starring in a 2002 Tribute to The Likely Lads
The Likely Lads
The Likely Lads was a black-and-white British sitcom created and written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais, and produced by Dick Clement. Twenty episodes were broadcast by the BBC, in three series, between 16 December 1964 and 23 July 1966...
and the 2006 film Alien Autopsy
Alien Autopsy
Alien Autopsy is a 2006 British comedy film with elements of science fiction, directed by Jonny Campbell. Written by William Davies, it relates the events surrounding the famous "alien autopsy" film promoted by Ray Santilli and stars Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly, also known as Ant & Dec...
.
In 2007 it was discovered that two shows, Ant & Dec's Gameshow Marathon and Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway which he co-presented with Donnelly had defrauded viewers participating in phone-ins. The latter was produced by the pair's own production company.
In April 2009, Ant & Dec achieved wide international exposure when, as backstage commentators for Britain's Got Talent
Britain's Got Talent
Britain's Got Talent is a British television talent show competition which started in June 2007 and originated from the Got Talent series. The show is produced by FremantleMedia's TalkbackThames and Simon Cowell's production company SYCOtv. The show is broadcast on ITV in Britain and TV3 in Ireland...
, they interviewed contestant Susan Boyle
Susan Boyle
Susan Magdalane Boyle is a Scottish singer who came to international public attention when she appeared as a contestant on the TV programme Britain's Got Talent on 11 April 2009, singing "I Dreamed a Dream" from ...
, whose audition would become the most viewed YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
video of the year and whose record album topped sales charts in dozens of countries.
Awards
Ant & Dec have won a considerable number of awards over the years for their television work, as well as awards for Best New Act during their singing career.They have gained:
- The Special Recognition Award at the National Television AwardsNational Television AwardsThe National Television Awards is a British television awards ceremony, broadcast by the ITV network and initiated in 1995. The National Television Awards are the most prominent ceremony for which the results are voted on by the general public. Because of the way the awards are decided, winners are...
for their contribution to television (at the young age of 27). - Best Entertainment Presenter at the National Television AwardsNational Television AwardsThe National Television Awards is a British television awards ceremony, broadcast by the ITV network and initiated in 1995. The National Television Awards are the most prominent ceremony for which the results are voted on by the general public. Because of the way the awards are decided, winners are...
for the past ten years. - Best Entertainment Programme for Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway several times at the NTAs.
- Best Reality TV Programme for I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! and Pop IdolPop IdolPop Idol is a British television series which debuted on ITV on 6 October 2001. The show was a talent contest to decide the best new young pop singer in the United Kingdom, based on viewer voting and participation. Two series were broadcast - one in 2001-02 and a second in 2003...
at the NTAs. - They have also won six awards to date at the British Comedy AwardsBritish Comedy AwardsThe British Comedy Awards is an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom celebrating notable comedians and entertainment performances of the previous year.-History:...
.
Earnings
In 2007, McPartlin with his on screen partner Donnelly, signed a £30 million, two and a half year, contract with ITV.Personal life
In the 1990s, McPartlin had an off-screen relationship with Byker Grove co-star Nicola BellNicola Bell
Nicola Bell is an English former actress.Her first acting role was as Debbie Dobson in the British children's television series Byker Grove in the early 1990s. She played the sister of Nicola Dobson over 25 episodes between 1990 and 1993....
.
In 2002, McPartlin was temporarily banned from driving after being caught speeding
Speed limit
Road speed limits are used in most countries to regulate the speed of road vehicles. Speed limits may define maximum , minimum or no speed limit and are normally indicated using a traffic sign...
at 127 mph through County Durham
County Durham
County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...
in his Audi TT
Audi TT
The Audi TT is a two-door sports car manufactured by the German automaker and Volkswagen Group subsidiary Audi since 1998.The Audi TT has been produced in two generations. Both generations have been available in two car body styles; as a 2+2 Coupé, or two-seater Roadster...
.
On 22 July 2006 he married longtime girlfriend and make-up artist Lisa Armstrong
Lisa Armstrong
Lisa Marie Armstrong is a former member of pop band Deuce and now make-up expert for ITV1's programme This Morning.-Personal life:...
at Cliveden, a hotel in Buckinghamshire. They met when they were both performing at a pop concert
Performance
A performance, in performing arts, generally comprises an event in which a performer or group of performers behave in a particular way for another group of people, the audience. Choral music and ballet are examples. Usually the performers participate in rehearsals beforehand. Afterwards audience...
at Newcastle City Hall
Newcastle City Hall
Newcastle City Hall is a concert hall, located in Newcastle upon Tyne which has hosted many popular music and classical artists throughout the years, as well as standup and comedy acts. Opened in 1927, the City Hall was built as a part of a development which also included the adjacent City Pool...
in 1994. McPartlin was there as part of PJ & Duncan AKA, whilst Armstrong was in the pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
band Deuce
Deuce (band)
Deuce were a British pop group that found success in the mid 1990s. A two male, two female quartet, they released four Top 30 singles in the UK charts during 1995 and 1996, before splitting up in 1997.-Career:...
.
On 8 March 2011 whilst watching a football match in a local pub, he was the subject of an unprovoked attack by an unknown assailant who then fled the scene.