Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly broke their silence after their 23-year streak as National Television Awards (NTA) Best Presenter winners ended on Wednesday, congratulating Gary Lineker and thanking viewers who voted for I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here.
The duo, who were not at the awards ceremony, posted on Instagram from South Africa where they are preparing the next series of I'm A Celebrity. "We just wanted to jump on here and say a huge huge thank you to everyone who voted for I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here last night. Wooo!... Thank you very much! Woooo everyone here are very very happy," they wrote. They added that although they "couldn't get it across the line this year" they were pleased for Lineker, calling him "thoroughly-deserving" and praising his speech.
Lineker, 64, was visibly surprised when his name was announced. On stage at the ceremony he said, "Blimey, I've won the Ant and Dec trophy. Thank you, thank you to everyone who voted for me, hugely appreciated. It's amazing." Lineker has presented television programmes following a long playing career and left Match of the Day earlier this year.
Ant and Dec have been frequent winners in the Best Presenter category since their first NTA in 2001, and their run had become a notable feature of the awards. They were pictured accepting one of their earlier awards in 2005, four years after that initial win. This year's result ended what organisers and some viewers had treated as a near-annual certainty for the pair.
The outcome generated discussion on television programmes the following day. On Thursday's episode of Lorraine, presenter Lorraine Kelly described the result as "controversial," noting that she often feels the trophy should go to Ant and Dec, but adding, "congratulations." She also referenced another upset at the awards, saying some viewers appeared surprised by Molly Mae's win in a separate category.
Organisers of the NTAs confirmed voting was open to the public. Ant and Dec's post expressed gratitude to the show's voters and said the camp in South Africa was "very very happy" with the support. Lineker's acceptance and the end of the duo's long run prompted reactions across social and broadcast media, underscoring the continuing public interest in the awards and in the presenters' roles on British television.
Ant and Dec are due to return to screens later this year with I'm A Celebrity, while Lineker's win adds to his recent television profile following his departure from Match of the Day. The NTAs did not immediately release further comment on the change in the Best Presenter category.