I'm A Celebrity fans hail 'fantastic news' as Holly Willoughby is confirmed to replace Ant McPartlin - but not everybody is convinced

The new series will kick off later this year
Natasha Sporn29 August 2018

I’m A Celebrity fans are divided after it was announced that Holly Willoughby will be co-hosting alongside Declan Donnelly for this year's series.

The This Morning presenter will be swapping the White City studio for the Australian jungle as she steps in for good friend Ant McPartlin while he continues his recovery from alcohol and substance abuse.

And fans are split in their opinion when the news was confirmed by ITV on Wednesday morning, with many viewers already “excited” to see Willoughby when the star-studded show returns later this year.

One fan wrote: “'I’m so excited to see Holly presenting #ImACeleb. This is going to be even funnier than normal!!”

New role: Holly Willoughby will host the new series alongside Declan Donnelly
@thismorning

While another said: “Yes! Holly Willoughby will be great for the job, she’s good friends with both of them, a good presenter. Good Luck to her! Can’t wait for it to start now.”

“I'm over the moon. They will have a right laugh. Only person that could fill Ant’s shoes in my opinion,” commented somebody else.

“Love this show and excited to watch especially now Holly joining,” read a different post.

But while tweets hailing the “great pairing” flooded in from fans saying they “can’t wait to watch”, some were unhappy it wasn’t Saturday Night Takeaway presenter Stephen Mulhern stepping into the role.

One comment read: “Holly Willoughby. Oh dear. Should’ve been Stephen Mulhern. #ImACeleb.”

“Nothing against @hollywills but I think @StephenMulhern would have been a much better choice, Take care Ant xx,” posted somebody else.

“Should of been @StephenMulhern would of been so much laughter with him instead of Holly,” sighed another viewer.

He said: “My recovery is going very well and for that to continue having spoken to Dec and ITV, I have made the decision to take the rest of the year off.

“I’d like to thank both Dec and ITV for their continued support and I look forward to getting back to work in the new year.”

I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! returns to ITV later this year.

Ant and Dec - In pictures

National Television Awards 2021 - London
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