1 week Ago By Chloe Govan
Ant McPartlin has presented I'm A Celebrity...
Get Me Out Of Here! with co-host Declan Donnelly for the past 21 years - but this season, there's a major difference. Besotted Ant and his wife Anne-Marie Corbett welcomed baby Wilder earlier this year - Ant's first child, after exeriencing longing to become a dad for a while. Now he'll be stationed in the Australian jungle for three weeks, and it'll be the furthest away he's ever been from his six-month-old son.
Meanwhile, the time difference he'll endure on the opposite side of the world means that when he FaceTimes Anne-Marie, it's highly likely that Wilder will already be tucked away in bed. He won't want to miss any major milestones with his son, who was born back in May, but has to head to the jungle. Dec is already used to juggling work commitments with kids, as he became a dad several years before his pal and now shares daughter Isla, six, and son Jack, two, with his wife Ali Astall.
Now first timer Ant has touched down in Australia, following reports that he feels "sad" about being separated from his family. A source published in The Mirror has stated: "Anne-Marie and Ant are going to stay in constant communication and FaceTime lots, but he is worried about the time difference. When he wakes up, Anne Marie will have put Wilder to bed, so, it's tough to navigate.
"Ant has made sure Anne Marie has a strong support system back home and he knows Wilder will be safe with his mum, he will just be missing them a lot." However, reuniting with his longtime pal and co-star Dec could help to soften the blow, with Ant speaking excitedly beforehand about the emotional embrace they'd share. "We will run towards each other on the beach in open arms," he explained.
Dec had earlier joked that he did give parenting advice to his pal, but that his top tip was simply that Ant should leave the baby with someone else. Now he really has left baby Wilder with his mum, although he's predicted that this year's series could be "the best yet". A source suggested it was a "bittersweet" journey over to the Gold Coast, but that Ant was thrilled to have a major footballer's wife as one of the contestants.
"He loves football and is so happy they've got Coleen Rooney in this year - he thinks this line-up could be the best they've had in a long time so he's focusing on that and is happy to be back," the source explained. Others hitting the jungle include Strictly legend Oti Mabuse, ex-N Dubz singer Tulisa, Coronation Street 's Alan Halsall - or Tyrone to ITV viewers - and Love Island's Maura Higgins, to name a few. Ant had previously revealed one reason he and Dec had stepped away from Saturday Night Takeaway was that they'd "both got children that we need to spend time with for a little bit" - but now it's time for the jungle action to begin.
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