Little Ant and Dec are unrecognisable ten years after leaving Saturday Night Takeaway

22 February 2021, 11:10 | Updated: 22 February 2021, 11:16

By Naomi Bartram

@naomibartram

The original Little Ant and Dec were part of Saturday Night Takeaway for five series'.

Ant and Dec were finally back on our screens over the weekend with another series of Saturday Night Takeaway.

And while there are a few big differences this time around - mainly no studio audience - two of the most popular stars were also missing.

Little Ant and Dec joined the show all the way back in 2003, originally played by James Pallister and Dylan McKenna-Redshaw from Newcastle.

The cheeky pair were tasked with interviewing some of the world’s biggest names, including George Clooney, Bruce Willis and the then Prime Minister Tony Blair.

They also got themselves in hot water with Will Smith when they made him wait for over an hour ahead of the Venice Film Festival while they played around in a swimming pool.

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But as they grew up, the boys could no longer play Ant and Dec and left the show after five series’ and in 2010, they were then replaced by Neil Overend and Haydn Reid.

Now in their 20s, both James and Dylan still live in the North East but they look very different.

According to his Facebook page, James works as a vehicle technician for BMW and Dylan has his own nutrition business.

Back in 2013, Dylan shared a photo of himself after reuniting with Ant and Dec on a night out.

The boys also returned to the studio to meet their replacements on the show.

And just like their predecessors, little Neil and Haydn caused lots of mischief when they interviewed the likes of Jennifer Lawrence, Scarlett Johansson and Wayne Rooney.

They even got to meet future Prime Minister Boris Johnson where they asked him about his hair.

However, the boys also outgrew the role, with a source explaining at the time: "Little Ant and Dec have outgrown the role, quite literally, and as such won't be returning to the show this year.

"Little Dec has his SATs next year and Little Ant is moving to high school so it felt like the right time for them to move on and focus on their studies."

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