Ant McPartlin "ashamed and mortified" as he pleads guilty to drink driving
The TV presenter arrived in court on Monday after being arrested and charged for drink driving in March
Ant McPartlin said he was “ashamed and mortified” and “accepts full responsibility” as he pleaded guilty to a single charge of drink driving at Wimbledon Magistrates Court today, Monday 16th April.
The Saturday Night Takeaway and Britain's Got Talent co-host was involved in a crash on Sunday 18th March.
The BBC reports that in a letter read out in court, the TV presenter stated that the events were a “turning point” for him and that he had let himself "and so many others down".
Meanwhile a witness statement from a driver of one of the two cars involved in the collision with McPartlin said that he and his wife "could have died as a result of Mr McPartlin's reckless driving".
The charge stated that the presenter had 75mg of alcohol in his breath at the time of the incident, which is double the legal limit.
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ITV responded to McPartlin's arrest last month by announcing they would not be airing Saturday Night Takeaway on Saturday 24th March, confirming in a statement that they had “taken a joint decision with Ant and Dec’s team not to broadcast”.
At the time a statement from McPartlin’s publicist added: “Ant has decided to go back into treatment and step down from his current TV commitments. He has spoken with Dec and ITV today and asked for time off for the foreseeable future.”
After co-host Declan Donnelly fronted the final two episodes of Takeaway by himself, the duo were reunited on screen on Saturday 14th April for the first of the audition rounds of Britain's Got Talent, which were pre-recorded in January and February this year.
However, it has already been announced that Donnelly will be presenting the live semi-finals and live final of Britain's Got Talent solo.