Ant and Dec have broken their silence after losing out on Best Presenter at the National Television Awards on Wednesday night.
The duo lost their 23-year streak to Gary Lineker, however were not at the ceremony for the loss, instead taking to Instagram from South Africa, where they are preparing for the upcoming series of I’m A Celeb.
The duo said: ‘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. Also thank you everyone who voted for us for the best presenter category even though we couldn’t get it across the line this year.
‘We were beaten by an up and coming new guy, 64-year-old Gary Lineker… Well deserved, congratulations Gary. Very well deserved, great speech too… Lovely speech thoroughly deserved, well done pal.’
Ant and Dec have broken their silence after losing out on Best Presenter at the National Television Awards on Wednesday night
Gary in the press room after winning the TV Presenter Award at the National Television Awards
Ant and Dec are pictured after winning the award last year
The duo went on to share a hilarious throwback snap showing them dressed as Batman and Robin with Gary as a penguin, in a nod to Batman’s enemy The Penguin, during their 2009 festive special Ant & Dec’s Christmas Show.
Poking fun at their NTAs loss, they added a caption reading: ‘Congratulations Gary Lineker or should we say our old nemesis The Penguin’.
At the event, Gary, 64, was visibly stunned by the news as he took to the stage as the arena erupted into loud applause.
The former footballer, who left Match Of The Day under a cloud earlier this year, told the audience: ‘Blimey, I’ve won the Ant and Dec trophy. Thank you, thank you to everyone who voted for me, hugely appreciated. It’s amazing.’
On Thursday’s episode of Lorraine, the presenter discussed Ant and Dec’s ‘controversial’ loss following their domiance over the gong.
She said: ‘Can we start with the controversy, And and dec didn’t win the Ant and Dec award! I always say – just give it to them, congratulations.’
‘There was another controversy, though, because Molly Mae won against some extraordinary entries – there was Rob Burrow, Freddi Flintoff, Amie Dowden, I think there were quite a few shocked faces.’
The duo said: ‘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!’
The duo went on to share a hilarious throwback snap showing them dressed as Batman and Robin with Gary as a penguin during their 2009 festive special Ant & Dec’s Christmas Show
Weighing in further, on Lorraine, Vogue Williams spoke of the loss, saying: You know what I think happened? I think that they got sick of winning and I think their wives were like, we don’t want any more trophies in the house. Fine…
‘Too much dusting. Too much dusting on the match.Too much dusting! And Gary Lineker, I mean Gary Lineker, surprised himself…
‘He won for for his role and match the day. He (spoke out) on things and he feels strongly about, and he said it in his speech, which was lovely.’
Lorraine joked: ‘I mean, Ant and Dec have got enough trophies, they’ll be fine, they’ll be OK’, to which Vogue echoed: ‘I don’t think they’ve any more room!’
The duo are pictured in 2005 with their awards – four years after their first win in 2001
The news comes after ITV bosses confirmed that I’m A Celebrity… South Africa will be back for a second run in 2026 – with a brand new line-up of returning campmates, bigger trials than ever before and, for the first time, a live public vote to crown the winner.
The spin-off of the hit jungle series, which debuted in 2023, will once again see some of the most memorable contestants from previous years battle it out in the South African wilderness.
While the celebrities have already proved they can survive the Australian jungle, producers promise that this tougher setting will push them to their limits.
The award-winning duo Ant and Dec are returning as hosts, teasing a fresh round of shocking twists and ‘truly epic’ challenges.
Ant said: ‘The campmates really brought their A-game to the first series so we can’t wait to be back for more trials, challenges and surprises amongst the beautiful South African landscape.’
At the event, Gary, 64, was visibly stunned by the news as he took to the stage as the arena erupted into loud applause
Dec added: ‘Having a live final is an exciting addition to the new series with the viewers choosing their IAC Legend and we’ve heard some of the new trials are truly epic, even by I’m A Celeb… standards!’
The pair also took to social media with the announcement, sharing a video with their millions of followers.
Ant began: ‘It’s us with some big news. Coming to ITV in 2026 is the return of I’m A Celebrity South Africa!
‘This time, there’s a twist because the finale will be coming to you live from the UK and you at home will pick the winner who will become an I’m A Celebrity legend.’
Dec then chimed in with mock disbelief: ‘Hang on a minute, so the viewers will pick the winner? Where do we get these mad ideas from?’
Ant couldn’t resist adding a final teaser, promising: ‘Take it from me, everything is bigger here, the challenges are bigger, and the trials are definitely bigger.’