ITV needs a new Ant and Dec to save Saturday night TV-Josie Copson-Entertainment – Metro

It could be time to refresh Saturday nights (Picture: ITV)

Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly finished Saturday Night Takeaway after 20 seasons and waved a tearful goodbye.

Although this ITV show is on hiatus, the emotional conclusion could be considered a little dramatic, as the Geordie duo are back again seven days later with Britain’s Got Talent (it’s giving similar energy to Coleen Nolan leaving Loose Women with a dedicated episode and specially-written ballad in 2011 and returning less than two years later) which is still in the desirable Saturday night slot.

We’ve gone longer without seeing our own reflection!

Once that’s done, we’ll see them on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here, and in the future, we could also get a fourth season of their game show Limitless Win.

Since Ant and Dec emerged into the world of showbiz in 1990 as child actors in Byker Grove, they’ve barely been off our screens.

They have turned their hand to many different shows, including Red or Black?, Pop Idol, and SMTV Live.

Ant and Ded are already back (Picture: Jon Super/Shutterstock/Rex Features)

It’s perfectly understandable why they’ve managed to rack up such a long list (we feel for the person moderating their Wiki page) – their warm persona, and easy chemistry has led to audiences seeing the pair, both 48, as a safe (and fun) pair of hands. As a result, the TV industry has not let them rest.

While we still want to see Ant and Dec knocking about, maybe it’s time for some other presenters to get a Saturday night show too.

We’ve got a few ideas…

Will Best and AJ Odudu

AJ and Will are a fun duet (Picture: James Veysey/Shutterstock)

Besties Will, 39, and AJ, 36, have nailed the first seasons of Big Brother and Celebrity Big Brother.

Both presenters had been grafting for years to get to this point – while AJ’s star power rose after Strictly Come Dancing, Will was the lesser-known co-host and finally got his big break on the ITV show.

While they’ve got the momentum going, surely the next stop in their journey is a glitzy Saturday night game show.

Katherine Ryan

Katherine needs all the TV shows (Picture: Dave Benett/Getty Images for EE)

The comedian to TV presenter route is a path well-trodden – Michael McIntyre has The Wheel and Michael McIntyre’s Big Show, Joel Dommett is chanting ‘take it off’ over on The Masked Singer, and Lee Mack fronts game show The 1% Club to name a few.

Unfortunately, female comedians seem to have fewer chances to dominate weekend TV. ITV’s Saturday line-up was previously analysed by comedy writer Laura Claxton, who noticed that while men are often entrusted with the fun shows, women can be left on the sidelines.

‘Let women be silly! Let women host entertainment shows! Let women prat about on a holiday! Don’t let broadcasters continue to focus women’s representation on TV around trauma,’ she wrote on X.

Of course, we have some titans of entertainment TV including Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman on Strictly Come Dancing, but we think it’s time for more.

Katherine, 40, has provided she has the capability to keep us entertained on 8 out of 10 Cats as a regular team captain. Plus she’s hosted All That Glitters: Britain’s Next Jewellery Star, as well as documentaries Katherine Ryan: Parental Guidance, where she always brings her trademark humour.

Sophia and Cinzia

Cinzia and Sophia already have a legion of fans (Picture: Dominic Lipinski/Getty Images)

Ignoring social media stars is something broadcasters should do at their own peril. They may not be famous to everyone, but they are the ultimate celebrity to younger generations.

ITV and BBC have used stars such as Anastasia Kingsnorth and Rachel Leary to promote their offerings and they’ve made excellent contestants too – just look at Saffron Barker and Joe Sugg on Strictly Come Dancing.

With dwindling ratings on traditional TV perhaps now is the time to enlist their help fronting the shows and YouTubers Sophia Tuxford, 25, and Cinzia Zullo, 26, could be an excellent choice. The pair already have a successful podcast, The Girls’ Bathroom, which they’ve taken out on multiple sell-out tours, and they have an impressive 418k subscribers on their YouTube channel.

Plus they are two best friends, who’ve got a natural rapport. The female Ant and Dec? We’d love to see it!

GK Barry

GK Barry has already proved her star power (Picture: Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock)

GK Barry is an online star, who has been slowly appearing more on our TV screens.

She made us howl with laughter on Stand Up to Cancer’s Don’t Look Down, and gave her verdict on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here on This Morning. She’s been rumoured for the jungle FYI!

The 24-year-old has garnered plenty of presenting experience on her podcast Saving Grace speaking to everyone from Katie Price to Alison Hammond.

GK Barry, real name Grace Keeling, seems to get their best from her guests by quickly putting them at ease with jokes, and wild questions, so perhaps a chat show is in her future.

Hannah Waddingham

It’s Hannah’s world, we just live in it (Picture: Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP)

She may be an actor first and foremost, but she’s an undeniable natural when it comes to presenting. She was the standout host of the recent Eurovision and fronts the prestigious Olivier Award ceremony.

Hannah, 49, is funny, and charming, and even firmly calls out sexism. We need more Hannah.

Jordan Banjo and Perri Kiely

Jordan and Perri have a close friendship (Picture: Getty Images)

Having a friendship prior to presenting together can help with the on-screen chemistry – Jordan, 31, and Perri, 28, are childhood friends who found fame together with dance troupe Diversity, and their closeness is obvious.

Since 2020, the pair have been setting their alarms for the crack of dawn to present Kiss Breakfast radio show.

They’ve created viral moments – who can forget Jordan’s weird pronunciation of crepe that does the rounds every Shrove Tuesday – and are consistently brilliant on the show each morning.

Britain’s Got Talent airs 7:30pm on ITV

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