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Holly Willoughby reveals she will hand back I’m A Celebrity presenting duties to pal Ant McPartlin and take kids out of school to join her on the month-long trip Down Under

The presenter says she feels a responsibility to take care of Ant's TV baby and is more scared of the Bushtucker Trials than celebs

Hannah Hope
Senior Bizarre Reporter

Published: 22:00, 9 Nov 2018
Updated: 8:36, 10 Nov 2018

WHEN Declan Donnelly jokingly introduced Ant McPartlin as the “gorgeous Holly Willoughby” on last year’s I’m A Celeb, nobody could have predicted the joke would become reality.

The cheeky duo were trying to poke fun at Ant’s stint in rehab.

Holly Willoughby says she will be handing back the I'm A Celeb reigns to pal Ant McPartlin next yearCredit: Free for editorial use

But now, with Ant, 42, taking more time out of the limelight to focus on his recovery, Holly has found herself called to duty for real to keep his seat warm as Dec’s jungle co-host.

In an exclusive interview, Holly said: “It’s totally unexpected to do this. You didn’t really want to have to be asked to do the show, it’s a weird one.”

Having been handpicked by the pair, with whom she has been close friends for 15 years, Holly feels a responsibility to take care of Ant’s TV baby.

She said: “I’m just looking after it until he gets back. It’s lovely that he trusted me with it.

Holly has admitted she's scared of creepy crawlies ahead of her stint on I'm A CelebCredit: Rex Features

Holly Willoughby does Bushtucker Trial in last This Morning before jungle stint as co-host of I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!

“It’s much easier if you work with somebody who is a friend. When you genuinely get on on screen, it’s going to work. It’s unsurprising.”

Since initial discussions over the summer, Ant has left Holly, 37, to find her feet ahead of the show, which starts on Sunday, November 18.

One of the first things she had to do was call her children’s head teacher, requesting permission to take them out of school to join her on the trip.

But the month-long stint Down Under will be no holiday for Harry, nine, Belle, seven, and Chester, four.

Holly, pictured here at the Glamour Women Of The Year Awards is good friends with Ant and DecCredit: PA:Press Association

Holly, who will also be joined by her parents and her TV producer husband Dan Baldwin, said: “The children will have a tutor out there, they’ve got loads to do.

“I’ve spoken to their teachers. The kids are like, ‘What do you mean we’re not going on holiday?’.

“I’ve had to be really clear with them, they can play for a couple of hours but none of us are on holiday. We’re all doing work.

The glam TV presenter says her children will have a tutor with them during their trip Down UnderCredit: Cascade News

“The headmaster was amazing. If the kids couldn’t come then it would have been a completely different ball game and I would have had to have a long, hard think about it.

“I don’t think I would have been able to do my job properly if I couldn’t have seen them.”

Now, as the first episode looms, the golden girl of daytime TV admits the show’s popularity is intimidating.

She said: “It is scary. I’ve always loved the show as a viewer and that comes with a responsibility.
“I want to go in and the audience to really enjoy it.”

Holly says it's an easy job if you're already friends with the other hostsCredit: Rex Features

Nine of this year’s crop of celebrity contestants have been confirmed, including football manager Harry Redknapp, 71, and DIY telly expert Nick Knowles, 56.

And Holly is hoping they will help make the series a success.

The This Morning presenter says: “It’s an easier job in some respects because it’s the celebrities that make the show. Dec and I are just presenting it to you and it’s all the stuff that goes on in the show that makes it a good series.

“Yes, it’s going to be different obviously, but actually we’re quite a small part of what makes the show, so I’m not too worried.”

Ant will not be presented I'm A Celeb this year as he takes time out to focus on his recoveryCredit: Rex Features

It will be the first time since the reality series began 16 years ago that Ant will be on the other side of the world from the action.

Asked if she thinks he will be watching at home, Holly says: “I’d imagine so. I have no idea, but he probably will.”

Holly has huge TV appeal. She is likeable, self-deprecating and approachable. But she knows she has to sharpen up her bedside manner for the jungle.

In a bid to coax the contestants into taking on the stomach-churning Bushtucker trials, Holly will be channelling her scolding skills — usually reserved for her children.

Holly is likeable and approachable but has to sharpen up her bedside manner for the jungleCredit: Getty - Contributor

She said: “I’m going to have to toughen up other-wise if I say to contestants, ‘Don’t worry, you don’t have to do this trial if you don’t want to’, it’s obviously going to be a disaster.

“You’ll have all these producers working on these brilliant trials and I’ll be going, ‘No, it’s fine if you really don’t want to do it you don’t have to’. So I’ve got to remember to get my ‘mum head’ on and be firm.”

The new presenting partnership, who will be branded as Dec and Holly, have spent the last few weeks building up their chemistry with practice read-throughs.

Holly said: “I’m just getting used to how the scripts run. So it was a script for a fake show.

This will be the first time Ant will be on the other side of the world for I'm A Celeb in 16 yearsCredit: ITV

“There’s just a lot to get my head around. I’ve been doing This Morning for nine years and there’s such a rhythm to it.

“And to suddenly do something that’s already got its own pattern and is already established, it’s going to take a bit of getting used to.”

While viewers haven’t seen Dec and Holly on screen together — bar in one old sketch on Saturday Morning kids’ show SMTV — the pair are great pals.

Ant and Dec showed Holly the ropes in kids’ TV presenting, and in recent years they have all holidayed together.

Ant and Dec worked with Holly on SMTV many years ago and they are all great palsCredit: Rex Features

Dec has been going out of his way to make Holly feel at home.

She said: “He’s given me lots of practical tips about sleep and wearing sensible shoes.

“He’s told me to be myself and just have fun and not to worry about it too much.”

In her day job on This Morning, Holly and co-host Phillip Schofield are renowned for descending into fits of giggles live on air.

Holly Willoughby will joined by her parents, husband and children in AustraliaCredit: Getty Images - Getty

But now, with a hilarious new sidekick in Dec, Holly admits that her tendency for hysterical laughter could be a problem.

She said: “Dec is so brilliant, he makes you laugh so much when you see him on screen anyway, so it’s like having a front-row seat, so I just start laughing.

“I’m like, ‘Oh my God, I can’t do this’. It’s just his face and he’s just doing that brilliant thing that he does.

“He’s just very, very funny, so I do worry because I’ve got to try and keep it together, but I’m just going to get the giggles.”

Holly Willoughby cuddles an upset Phillip Schofield as they prepare to say goodbye ahead of I'm a Celebrity stint

Another problem for Holly is she is terrified of the creepy crawlies found on the show.

Holly said: “I hope I’m not going to be worse than the contestants. I’m not brilliant with that sort of stuff. I’ve never watched one of the eating trials. I’ve only seen bits from hiding behind a cushion.

It makes me feel sick.