Ant McPartlin banned from driving and fined after pleading guilty to drink driving

The BBC reports that the TV presenter was handed a 20-month ban from driving after being found more to have than double the legal limit of alcohol in his breath.

McPartlin said he was “ashamed and mortified” and "accepts full responsibility” in a letter that was read out in court.

The Saturday Night Takeaway and Britain's Got Talent co-host also stated that the events were a “turning point” for him and that he had let himself “and so many others down”.

Meanwhile, a witness statement from a driver of one of the two cars involved in the collision with McPartlin said that he and his wife “could have died as a result of Mr McPartlin’s reckless driving”.

The charge at court stated that he was found to have 75 mcg of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath after he was involved in a collision with two cars in London on Sunday 18th March. The legal limit is 35 mcg.

McPartlin's barrister Liam Walker said that his client had expressed both his "sorrow and regret" over the incident and had been seeking help for "alcohol and emotional issues" at the time of the crash.

Walker added: "He hopes that in time he can make himself better and that he might be forgiven by all of the many people he knows and he feels he has let down terribly."

ITV responded to McPartlin’s arrest last month by announcing they would not be airing Saturday Night Takeaway on Saturday 24th March, confirming in a statement that they had “taken a joint decision with Ant and Dec’s team not to broadcast”.

At the time a statement from McPartlin’s publicist added: “Ant has decided to go back into treatment and step down from his current TV commitments. He has spoken with Dec and ITV today and asked for time off for the foreseeable future.”

After co-host Declan Donnelly fronted the final two episodes of Takeaway by himself, the duo were reunited on screen on Saturday 14th April for the first of the audition rounds of Britain’s Got Talent, which were pre-recorded in January and February this year.

Donnelly will be presenting the live semi-finals and live final of Britain’s Got Talent solo when they air later this spring.