Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly are certainly having an incredible 2019 so far! After they won their eighteenth successive National Television Award on Tuesday night, the presenting pair shared with fans on social media that they had been given another accolade - a Guinness World Record. "The lovely folks from @guinnessworldrecords came down to #BGT auditions today and surprised us with these. How lovely! Thank you X," they wrote in the caption, with the snap showing the duo holding their certificates. The framed documents read: "The most National Television Awards for Best Presenter won consecutively is 18 and was achieved by Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly (both UK) as of 22 January 2019."
Ant and Dec celebrated another accolade
While Ant and Dec couldn't attend the NTAs to accept their gong, the camera did cut live to them when they were announced as winners. Ant admitted he felt he couldn't accept the accolade due to his absence over the past year, saying: "This is a genuine shock, especially this year. I don't feel I can accept this award this year. The one reason we won the award this year is because of this guy [Dec]... his hard work, dedication, wit... he's the best mate there is out there. I love you man, well done."
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The following day, the pair did take to Twitter to defend the win, after there was some backlash from the public due to Ant's absence in 2018. They retweeted a message that read: "To those of you who are hating: Ant McPartlin hosted all 6 of the @BGT audition episodes last year & 3 of the @ITVTakeaway live shows, so he is eligible & they both deserve it. #NTAs."
Ant admitted in a recent interview that the aftermath of his drink-drive arrest last year did cause friction between him and best friend Dec. "He's angry, of course he’s angry. But it's justified and I understood it," he told The Sun. "Underneath all of that is love and still is love. And that’s what we talked about more than anything."
MORE: See the emotional way Ant McPartlin addressed the audience at Britain's Got Talent return
