| Ant McPartlin | |
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McPartlin at the 2009 British Academy Television Awards. |
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| Born | Anthony David McPartlin 18 November 1975 Newcastle upon Tyne, England |
| Residence | London |
| Nationality | British |
| Ethnicity | White British |
| Occupation | TV presenter, actor, singer |
| Years active | 1987–present |
| Employer | ITV (previously BBC) |
| Spouse | Lisa Armstrong (m. 2006–present) |
Anthony David "Ant" McPartlin (born 18 November 1975)[1] 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, I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!, Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway, Britain's Got Talent, PokerFace, Push the Button and Red or Black? They have also returned to acting, starring in a 2002 Tribute to The Likely Lads and the 2006 film Alien Autopsy.
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Ant's first appearance on television was on the children's workshop programme Why Don't You?[2] 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.[3] 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.[4]
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.
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:
In 2007, McPartlin with his on screen partner Donnelly, signed a £30 million, two and a half year, contract with ITV.[5]
In the 1990s, McPartlin had an off-screen relationship with Byker Grove co-star Nicola Bell.[6]
In 2002, McPartlin was temporarily banned from driving after being caught speeding at 127 mph through County Durham in his Audi TT.[7]
On 22 July 2006 he married longtime girlfriend and make-up artist Lisa Armstrong at Cliveden, a hotel in Buckinghamshire.[8] 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.[9]
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.[10]
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