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Ant McPartlin given £86,000 fine after pleading guilty to drink-driving

Ant appeared at Wimbledon Magistrates' Court on Monday

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Ant McPartlin has been banned from driving for 20 months and given an £86,000 fine after pleading guilty to drink-driving.

The television presenter has requested to complete a drink-driving awareness course, which would reduce his driving ban to 15 months.

He must also pay £85 prosecution fees and a £170 surcharge, according to Sky News.

The judge reportedly took into account Ant’s weekly earnings of £130,000 when making her decision.

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Ant McPartlin pictured at Wimbledon Magistrates’ Court on Monday (Credit: Jules / Flynet – SplashNews)

The 42-year-old said he was “ashamed and mortified” by his actions after entering a guilty plea at Wimbledon Magistrates’ Court on Monday.

He was twice the legal limit when he was arrested on March 18 following a collision with two other cars in Richmond, London.

The court was told Ant had 75 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, when the legal limit is 35mcg per 100 ml.

Anthony McPartlin arrives at court (Jonathan Brady/PA)

Ant arrived to a scrum of photographers and reporters outside Wimbledon Magistrates’ Court, which was guarded by seven police officers.

Wearing a black, three-piece suit, white shirt and black tie, Ant stood in the glass dock in court.

He spoke to confirm his name, date of birth, address and nationality before pleading guilty to a single charge of drink-driving.

The charge states he had 75 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, the legal limit is 35 microgrammes per 100 millilitres of breath.

Ant said he was “ashamed and mortified” by his actions (Credit: Fameflynet)

A statement read out by Ant’s lawyer said the Saturday Night Takeaway presenter was “ashamed and mortified” by his actions, and “accepts full responsibility” for what happened.

According to BBC News, the star’s statement to the court acknowledged he had let himself and many others down.

The statement reportedly also said the incident had been a “turning point” for Ant, and he appreciates people in the public eye must set an example to others.

Ant’s lawyer read out a statement on his behalf to the court (Credit: Fameflynet)

A witness statement was also read out in court, in which the driver of one of the other cars involved in the collision said he feared his family could have died.

Ant’s lawyer told the court the television presenter is deeply sorry for what happened and is taking steps to ensure it never happens again.

Ant had been scheduled to appear in court on April 4, but the hearing was adjourned until today.

After Ant was charged with drink-driving, ITV announced that his co-presenter Dec Donnelly would go on to present the end of the current series of Saturday Night Takeaway on his own.

Dec fronted the final two episodes solo, including the finale which was filmed at Universal Orlando Resort.

Ant has stepped down from current TV work as he returns to treatment.

Ant has stepped down from current TV work as he returns to treatment (Credit: Wenn)

His publicist said last month: “Ant has decided to go back into treatment and step down from his current TV commitments. He has spoken with Dec and ITV and asked for time off for the foreseeable future.”

It has been confirmed that Dec, 42, will present the upcoming Britain’s Got Talent live shows by himself, while Ant steps away from the TV spotlight.

In a statement, ITV said: “Dec will be hosting the live shows which, for the first time ever, are coming from the Hammersmith Apollo while Ant steps down from his TV commitments for now.”

FLYNET - Britain's Got Talent Judges Pose On The Red Carpet At The Lowry Theater In Manchester
Ant, pictured with Dec and the BGT judges in January, will feature in the pre-recorded auditions episodes of the show (Credit: Aaron Parfitt / Flynet – SplashNews)

Ant will appear in the pre-recorded auditions episodes of BGT, which began on Saturday night on ITV.

The new series launched with 8.3 million viewers – down on last year.

ITV said the show, in which the judges and presenters were wowed by a magician, was the most-watched programme of the night.

Dec recently hosted Saturday Night Takeaway’s last two episodes of the series solo, including the finale live from Florida (Credit: ITV)

But it is a drop from the 2017 opener, which was watched by 8.7 million, with a 42% audience share.

Saturday night’s show, featuring Simon Cowell, Alesha Dixon, David Walliams and Amanda Holden returning as judges, had a 41% share and an audience peak of 9.6 million viewers.

ITV said Saturday’s Britain’s Got Talent instalment was the most-watched entertainment show of the year so far and that it was the most popular programme on any channel so far this year for 16 to 34-year-olds.

Last year’s series culminated with pianist Tokio Myers being crowned the champion.

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