Declan Donnelly has confirmed that he and wife of three years, Ali Astall, are expecting their first child together. The Saturday Night Takeaway star confirmed the news to his nearly seven million Twitter followers on Sunday night. "Just wanted to say thank you for all the lovely messages. The news has sneaked out a little earlier than we had hoped but Ali and I are delighted to be expecting our first child. Thanks for all the love, we really appreciate it.D x," he wrote.
The happy news was first reported on Saturday night, with sources telling The Sun that Dec's wife Ali had passed the 12 week mark of her pregnancy and that the pair were delighted.
Dec's happy news was annouced via Instagram
Fans soon rushed to Twitter to congratulate the couple, who married in 2015. "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."
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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."
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Declan and his wife Ali are thrilled to be expecting a baby
It's the perfect time for some good news for the popular TV star, as it's been a difficult week for him and his presenting pal Ant. Last weekend, Dec's sidekick 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."
