Ant McPartlin brands wife ‘legend’ as they announce birth of their first son

Geordie television presenter Ant McPartlin has announced the arrival of his first child, with a caption calling his wife a ‘legend’.

Ant, who is one half of iconic presenting duo Ant & Dec, with fellow geordie Declan Donelly, first shot to fame in the early 1990s after acting in Newcastle-based children’s drama, Byker Grove.

The pair soon became a duo, first releasing music as their Byker Grove characters PJ & Duncan, and as themselves before finding their feet in presenting. 

The duo are now regarded as the most popular presenters in Britain, winning the National Television Award for Most Popular Entertainment/TV Presenter 22 years in a row. 

Although Ant and Dec present many shows across ITV, they are most known for presenting Britain's Got Talent, I’m A Celebrity: Get Me Out Of Here and Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway. 

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Although their careers have gone from strength to strength, Ant has faced hardship in his personal life, struggling with addiction and divorcing from his wife of 11 years Lisa Armstrong in 2018. 

However, Ant is now celebrating after finding a new love with his former personal assistant Anne-Marie Corbett, who he married in 2021. The pair have now welcomed their first child together, with Ant announced via the Ant & Dec Instagram page.

In the post, Ant shared a black and white image of himself cradling his newborn baby, alongside a caption which revealed the name the couple had chosen. 

The caption read: “Welcome to the family Wilder Patrick Mcpartlin. 

“Born, 14/05/24 at 8.54am

“Baby is beautiful, Mummy’s a legend, Sisters are over the moon. Dad’s a mess!”

Ant is step-dad to Anne-Marie’s two daughters, and in the image shared on social media, Ant displayed a family tree tattoo on his shoulder which included the names of his step-daughters as well as the couple’s two dogs. 

Many of Ant’s celebrity friends and colleagues commented on the announcement, including; Scarlett Moffatt, Cat Deeley, Holly Willoughby, Joel Dommett, Myleene Klass and Amanda Holden.