I’m A Celebrity host Ant McPartlin under fire over ‘degrading’ comments on air as rep issues statement

I’m A Celebrity co-host Ant McPartlin has come under fire for comments he made during episodes of Ant and Dec’s unscripted I’m A Celebrity spin-off talkshow Jungle Club, which has nothing to do with ITV and instead goes out live on the duo’s Instagram page.

Ant and Dec have co-presented I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! since it launched in 2000.

According to reports from MailOnline and the Independent, Ant has made several comments over the course of a handful of Jungle Club episodes that have been described by gender equality campaigner Patsy Stevenson as “degrading”.

Ant and Dec have presented I’m A Celebrity since it began in 2000 (Credit: I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!/YouTube)

Ant McPartlin’s Jungle Club comments under fire

According to the Independent, on a November 27 episode of Jungle Club, Ant described a colleague as “fit”.

He also suggested another could both “give it and take it”, before acknowledging this phrase contained a double entendre – a double meaning – raising his eyebrows, and adding, “Oops, cheeky”.

In another instance, he reportedly asked a female colleague if her thumb ring was an indicator that she was single.

“And then when you get with a boy, you pop it off?” he asked, according to the paper. “Anyone who wants to date Lola, send some pictures of yourself.”

He reportedly referred to it as a “virginity ring” and asked if its wearer was having a “nice time” in Australia while filming I’m A Celebrity.

Ant and Dec have known each other since they were little boys working on Byker Grove together (Credit: Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway)
In another episode, Ant McPartlin and his co-presenter Declan Donnelly were eating sausages, and Ant asked Lola if she would like some, before checking himself and saying to Dec, “No? Inappropriate?”

Dec then reportedly joked that HR would be there “in a minute”.

Finally, Ant said he’d save some icing for the same colleague to lick off his fingers.

Comments described as ‘degrading’

Gender equality campaigner Patsy Stevenson, who became famous in 2021 when she was arrested at the vigil for Sarah Everard, argues that Ant’s comments reflect a “culture of casual sexism that undermines women in the workplace”.

She told MailOnline: “The comments about ‘licking toppings’ and asking for photos of potential suitors are particularly degrading and verge on harassment.

“For someone in Ant’s position, there is a responsibility to lead by example.”

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Ant himself suggested the comments were harmless, and unproblematic given the nature of the show, its comedic sensibility, and the working relationships shared by members of its crew.

“Much of the comedy programme’s content deliberately leans into Ant and Dec’s comedic friendship,” they said, “and working relationship with the crew.”