ITVAnt McPartlin broke down in tears during the first episode of Britain’s Got Talent after a schoolgirl told him she missed him.
Fans of the talent show should expect waterworks tomorrow evening (March 6), when the first episode airs, with it looking set to be an emotional one.
This will be the first time Ant’s been back on our screens since his drink-driving incident in March last year, with the Geordie presenter back alongside best pal Declan Donnelly.
GettyAnd Ant’s presence was certainly felt, as one young girl couldn’t wait to hug him and tell him how much she missed the presenter.
As per the Daily Mail, the little girl – from a children’s choir – clung to him during auditions and told him she ‘missed him’ while he was gone.
The choir, from Flakefleet Primary School in Lancashire, delivered a performance of Don’t Stop Me Now which left the judges in tears. However, it was nothing compared to what was about to happen.
As the group left the stage, one little girl made a beeline for Ant who then cuddled her before saying , ‘I missed you Ant’.
ITVLooking emotional and close to tears, Ant then responded, as per the Mirror,saying:
I missed you too. Now you’ve got to let go now, you’ve got to go through.
Rather than leave straight away though, the youngster carried on hugging the presenter before saying, ‘bye bye’.
In March last year, Ant was charged with drink-driving after an incident which caused minor injuries to himself and resulted in a three-year-old girl being hospitalised. It’s understood he was twice the legal limit at the time of the accident.
The presenter was arrested at the scene of the accident after he failed to pass a breathalyser test. He later spent a month in rehab, undergoing intensive treatment.
A statement released by Ant’s publicist in the immediate aftermath of his crash read:
Ant has decided to go back into treatment and step down from his current TV commitments. He’s spoken with Dec and ITV today and asked for time off for the foreseeable future.
As such Saturday Night Takeaway will not be going ahead this Saturday
Tomorrow’s show will be his first TV appearance in almost a year with co-presenter and best pal Dec.
If you want to discuss any issues relating to alcohol in confidence contact Drinkline on 0300 123 1110 for advice and support.
A Broadcast Journalism Masters graduate who went on to achieve an NCTJ level 3 Diploma in Journalism, Lucy has done stints at ITV, BBC Inside Out and Key 103. While working as a journalist for UNILAD, Lucy has reported on breaking news stories while also writing features about mental health, cervical screening awareness, and Little Mix (who she is unapologetically obsessed with).