Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway hit with Ofcom complaints after baby prank

Posted on : March 1, 2023
Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway hit with Ofcom complaints after baby prank
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    Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway has been smacked with 130 Ofcom complaints from angry viewers.

    The Geordie duo returned to our screens on Saturday night (February 25) with the first episode of the new series of their ITV entertainment show.

    However, viewers were left unimpressed with a segment including a baby scan.

    READ MORE: Ant and Dec Limitless Win duo make ITV show history on track to win biggest prize ever

    Broadcasting watchdog Ofcom have confirmed that they've received 111 complaints in relation to the series of pranks played on a husband throughout his wife’s pregnancy and 19 reports about another aspect of the episode.

    At the top of the show, hosts Ant McPartlin and Dec Donnelly disclosed that they had been following a young couple for a year, including during prenatal scans for their first child.

    Liam was unaware he was being watched on camera when he went to a "4D scan clinic" with his pregnant wife Amy, who was in on the "joke" with the show's hosts.

    However, the clinic was a fake.

    With the couple watching in the studio, presenter Dec said: "Last summer, Amy told us she was three months pregnant.

    "All parents know one of the most exciting moments of the pregnancy journey is when you go for a scan and you get to see your baby."

    Ant added: "And just four weeks later, you went for a state-of-the-art 4D scan, didn't you?"

    Liam replied: "Yeah," before Dec said: "No you didn't Liam, because the whole thing was fake and was set up by us."

    Fans of the ITV show took to Twitter to express their disappointment in the choice of prank.

    Some viewers criticised it as "distasteful", while others warned of a backlash following the show.

    One angry viewer said: "That has got to be the worst television I've ever seen as yous call it Saturday entertainment. Please think of all the beautiful families that never got to that stage. Pure sick and definitely not entertainment #SaturdayNightTakeaway."

    Another added: "@itvtakeaway This prank is too far! So people would dream to see their unborn child or have lost their baby or had a miscarriage. #SaturdayNightTakeaway this could trigger so many people tonight. Childbirth and having a baby is not a joke."

    A third person said: "Let’s hope this is not a sign of things to come #SaturdayNightTakeaway. Can see a huge backlash with this!"

    While a fourth agreed: "Whoever signed this prank off needs to be fired. #SaturdayNightTakeaway don't get it, not very tasteful."

    Others sympathised with Ant and Dec, concluding that the prank was fine because Amy had agreed to it.

    One fan commented: "People like to get offended by everything." Mark Darky Rowe put: "Wife was happy, so stop being such snowflakes."

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    A second person added: "His wife asked them. She knows her husband. End of."

    While someone else said: "Seriously? The wife was in on it. They all found it amusing. So should no scan photos, fake or otherwise, be shown on TV in case it triggers people?"

    Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway airs Saturdays on ITV1 and ITVX

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    • ITV
    • Saturday Night Takeaway
    • Ant Mcpartlin
    • Declan Donnelly

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