Declan Donnelly didn’t want Ant McPartlin to be replaced with a man on I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here.
Ant is taking some time away from the spotlight to focus on his sobriety – meaning he will miss hosting this year’s series of the jungle show – and now Dec has revealed why he opted for Holly Willoughby to stand in as presenter.
Speaking to The Sun newspaper, he said: “As always I’m incredibly excited to be heading to Oz for I’m A Celebrity.
“It is obviously tinged with sadness that Ant won’t be coming this year, I’m going to really miss him, but it’s only for one series and he’ll be back stronger next year.
“I didn’t want to host this series with another guy so Holly was top of my list.”
Read more: Holly defends taking kids out of school for I’m A Celeb
Meanwhile, Ant helped choose Holly as his replacement on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!.
She said: “We’ve spoken and he’s happy – he was part of the decision that I’d do it. He just needs to look after himself, that’s the most important thing.
“He knows I’ll look after the show and keep it warm for him…
“On I’m A Celebrity… it’s important to have chemistry and to have a friendship as a starting point you can grow from.
Read more: First pictures of Holly and Dec in Oz
“It’s that unspoken thing: you know how the other person speaks, how their sentences are going to end.
That helps a lot. It’s definitely bittersweet. I’m A Celebrity… is a huge show but nobody wanted to have to be asked to do it. It’s not nice for anyone.”
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