In recent months Ant & Dec have spoken more about their televisual adventures both in front of the cameras and behind them as I’m A Celebrity South Africa kicks off
Ant McPartlin Declan Donnelly(Image: ITV)
Declan Donnelly, one half of the Ant & Dec presenting duo, has said they were stunned by an intruder at their lodge on I’m A Celebrity South Africa.
The pair are out in the region presenting the latest series of the ITV programme, which features 12 celebrities, including Gemma Collins, Sinitta, Seann Walsh and Sir Mo Farah, competing for victory.
Anthony McPartlin, 50, said to Declan on their podcast Hanging Out with Ant & Dec: “Didn’t you have a bush baby in your room?” The bush babies Anthony was asking about are a type of nocturnal primate.
In response, Declan, 50, said: “In my lodge was a thatched roof, and I came back from work and my fruit bowl — there was an orange on the side — and it had been half peeled, and there was wee on the worktop.
“Somebody came round — one of the guys who come to pick us up. I said, ‘Have you seen this? Looks like wee on the side and my fruit’s had a go at.’
“He went, ‘Oh, you’ve got bush babies. They live in the thatched roof and they come down and they come at your fruit, have a wee and then they go again.’”
This isn’t the only time Ant & Dec have spoken about their lives behind the television screens, with their podcast seeing the pair speak a little more about the famous people they’ve talked to and the hilarious incidents along the way.
Notably, the pair spoke earlier this year about what it was like when they met King Charles when he was the Prince of Wales in the early 2000s, and how Declan got distracted whilst meeting the then heir to the throne.
The interview, to mark the 25th anniversary of the Prince’s Trust — now the King’s Trust — with the future monarch took place at Highgrove House. Declan recalled how Charles said that he wanted to chat with Ant & Dec off camera before the interview began so they could get to know each other.
As a result, he invited them in for tea. However, Declan said he got a bit distracted by not knowing who was going to pour the tea.
He said: “So, we went in, sat in this room, and he came in and shook our hands and we sat down and they brought in this massive tray with a big teapot, teacups on it, biscuits and stuff, and we sat there and he’s talking to us.
“I’m sitting there going, ‘Who’s going to pour the tea? He’s not going to do it. Do we do it? Are we supposed to do this? Should one of us just dive in?’ I was really distracted.
“‘Has this been left for us to do because he’s not going to do it? So have we got to do this?’ I was really distracted through the whole thing. I kind of wasn’t listening to what he was saying because I was too worried.”
Declan’s comments came ahead of the pair’s travels to South Africa to film the I’m A Celebrity spin-off, which returns to screens at 9pm tonight on ITV.