Friendship, it is said, can last a lifetime.
And in the case of I’m a Celebrity hosts Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly, their friendship has survived even the darkest of times.
Firmly established as national treasures, it seemed the duo could do no wrong until Ant fell spectacularly off the rails.
The popular presenter was stung with an £86,000 fine and a 20-month driving ban after pleading guilty to drink driving in April 2018.
And his drink and drug problems led him to a have a second spell in rehab with his career hanging in the balance.
He’d been hooked on prescription painkillers and hit the booze to mask his problems.
His much-publicised personal troubles could have ended his career but thankfully his best mate Dec came to the rescue and helped him get back on track.
Ant and Dec have been friends for most of their life and have made it through a lot of drama
Fast forward nearly three years later and presenters Ant and Dec’s popularity could not be stronger.
This Saturday sees the eagerly-anticipated return of their award-winning Saturday Night Takeaway and Ant seems to have put his past problems firmly in the rear mirror.
“I wanted to punch him and hug him at the same time,” recalled Dec, speaking to the Guardian.
“I didn’t know which one I wanted to do first.”
Ant had a stint in rehab after getting charged with drink-driving (Image: Getty Images,)
He revealed to FANE podcast: “We had to really step back and take stock of it all – almost to get our friendship back on track. I think we’d taken it for granted for too long.”
Ant had been due to present I’m A Celebrity alongside his Geordie buddy, but Holly Willoughby stepped in to save the show after things spiralled out of control.
But the dynamic duo returned to host this series of the show together – and their perfect sync shone through once again.
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Dec had counselling after Ant’s personal turmoil (Image: ITV)
Dec revealed he had counselling after the shock at what had happened, but now the pair have got their long career-defining friendship back on track.
That’s a firm view shared by experienced body language expert Judi James who, having studied the pair on the recent series of I’m A Celeb, has no doubts the pair’s problems have been healed.
She stressed to the Mirror: “The undisputed winners of this series of I’m a Celeb just have to be Ant and Dec.
“Our enjoyment depends on the guys being finely-tuned as trapeze artists. This was the series where the boys really did make it all look easy again, so much so that we were able to forget their recent challenges as both friends and as professional partners.
“Ant and Dec are back to their signature set of even power-balance displays.
The pair have made it through thick and thin and have come out stronger (Image: Instagram)
“Their performance healed in front of our eyes and hairline fractures now seem to be invisible to the naked eye.
“Their mirroring is intense again and their timing immaculate.
“Part of the fun was the feeling that we were eavesdropping on two close friends having hilarious, naughty fun together and winding one another up, and that is very much where Ant and Dec seem to be back to.”
*Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway returns this weekend (ITV, 7pm).
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
