The 41-year-old ITV favourite is said to be sure that his long-time presenting partner Ant, also 41, will be fit and well after entering rehab last month and ready to head to Australia later in the summer.
After reports surfaced that I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! bosses were lining up Holly Willoughby, 36, to take Ant’s place in the jungle should he not feel ready to return to work, a source close to Dec has told The Mirror that there is no chance that he will be hosting without Ant.
“Dec wouldn’t work on screen without Ant on any major show and he has said the last thing he would do is go to Australia without him,” the insider revealed.
“To say he would consider working with Holly is ridiculous,” they continued. “He is a good friend of hers but he would not do that to Ant.”
Insisting that those close to the Britain’s Got Talent favourites are confident that troubled Ant will “bounce back” in time for the new series, the source added: “Ant and Dec are a team with a huge emotional bond.
“They are like brothers and Dec will only be hosting I’m A Celebrity with Ant by his side,” they said.
A representative for Ant and Dec declined to comment on the report.
Ant announced his struggle with alcohol and prescription drug addiction last month before checking in to an unnamed rehab facility to undergo two months of treatment.
Last weekend, rumours emerged that show bosses believed that This Morning presenter Holly would be the ideal replacement to work alongside Dec if Ant wasn’t well enough to make his return to screens.
However, Holly’s publicist told Express.co.uk that the reports were “total nonsense,” a sentiment echoed by a representative for ITV, who stated that the story was “purely speculative”
Fans of the Geordie duo will no doubt be pleased to hear that there are no plans to split the pair up as they eagerly await Ant’s return.
Daily Express :: TV and Radio Feed
