Saturday Night Takeaway to Return Next Year

LONDON: Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway, produced by ITV Studios, has been reordered by ITV, where it is slated to return in 2014.

The hit show watches as hosts Ant (Anthony McPartlin) and Dec (Declan Donnelly) spring surprises on audience members and viewers in the U.K. It also includes a number of other stunts and sketches, as well as appearances from such celebrities as Alan Carr, David Walliams, Ashley Roberts and Sharon Osborne, among others. Each episode concludes with the “End of the Show Show,” which has previously featured Robbie Williams, the cast of Riverdance and a well-received performance of “Let’s Get Ready to Rhumble.”

Ant commented: “We’ve been overwhelmed by the positive reaction to this series, especially after four years off air.”

Dec remarked: “We’ve absolutely loved every minute of the shows this year and can’t wait to get working on another series for next year.”

Peter Fincham, ITV’s director of television, said, “Ant and Dec are entertainers at the very top of their game and we couldn’t be more proud to have them on ITV. The team have delivered a triumphant series and we look forward to bringing our audience more of their inimitable brand of fast-paced, family entertainment next year.”

Elaine Bedell, ITV’s director of entertainment and comedy, noted: “Takeaway has burst back into the schedule this year with some brilliant, original and inventive pieces. It is a great tribute to Ant and Dec, and to the team, that it feels so fresh—and its success has shown there is still very much an enduring audience appetite for high quality, prime-time entertainment on Saturday nights.”

Siobhan Greene, the director of entertainment for ITV Studios, added: “Ant and Dec’s talent is dazzling and as a production team we are all so proud to be part of a show that is entertaining the nation every Saturday night.”