Fans have rushed to Twitter to congratulate Declan Donnelly and wife Ali Astall following Dec's confirmation that the couple, who married in 2015, are expecting their first child together. "Congratulations Dec to you & Ali. Hope everything goes well, you'll make a great dad. Xxxx," said one fan, whilst another commented: "Many many congratulations to Dec and Ali on their wonderful baby news....l'm so thrilled for u both. Love and kisses to u both."
Many of the nearly 7 million Twitter fans he and friend Ant McPartlin have in a joint account revealed they were thrilled to be waking up to some good news, following a tough week for the presenting duo: "So happy for Dec Donnelly and his wife Ali, who are expecting their first baby after what must have been an awful week for him." Another comment read: "Just burst into tears hearing the news of Ali's pregnancy. Congratulations to Dec & Ali. My thoughts also with Ant. I'm sure when he is well again he'll make a cracking Uncle."
Dec and Ali Astall are reportedly expecting their first child together
The Sun reported the happy news late on Saturday, revealing that Dec's wife Ali had passed the 12 week mark of her pregnancy and that the pair were delighted. It's been a difficult time for the popular TV stars - just last week, Ant McPartlin was arrested for drink driving following a car crash on Sunday 18 March. Since then, Ant has gone to rehab and Dec has announced he will present the last two Saturday Night Takeaway shows on his own - something he hasn't done before..
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In a statement, ITV said, "ITV can confirm that Saturday Night Takeaway, presented by Declan Donnelly, will return on March 31, and the series finale will be taking place at Universal Orlando Resort in Florida a week later."
The couple got married in 2015
Meanwhile Dec took to Twitter to post the following heartfelt message to fans. "Whilst I never thought I'd be in this position, after much discussion and careful consideration we’ve decided that the remaining two shows of this series of Saturday Night Takeaway will go ahead," he said.
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"We made a promise to take hundreds of deserving winners to Florida to watch the series finale, and we will honour that. Everyone at ITV and the Takeaway team feels we owe it to the audience to complete the series."
Dec's representative told HELLO! they do not comment on speculation about client pregnancies.