When is Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway back on TV?

Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway will soon be returning to ITV but there’s a catch. This latest outing not only marks the show’s 20th series but also its last, with the Geordie duo hitting pause on their fan-favourite variety show after two award-winning decades at the top.

For fans of this long-running series, their Saturday night viewing may never be the same. Taking its cues from popular weekend entertainment shows like Noel’s House Party, Saturday Night Takeaway boasted celebrity guests, musical performers, live skits, pre-recorded antics and even prize giveaways for lucky viewers.

The show proved so popular with fans and critics that it bagged multiple BAFTAs and National Television Awards during its 20-year tenure. However, all good things must eventually come to an end and that seems to be the case for Saturday Night Takeaway - but not without one last blowout.

It’s important to note that this ‘final series’ is in fact being billed as more of a hiatus, meaning the show could return at some point in the future. It wouldn’t be the first time such a thing has happened either, with Ant and Dec hitting pause on Saturday Night Takeaway for four years between 2009 and 2013.

In the meantime though, here’s everything we know about the return of Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway.

When does Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway 2024 start?

Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway 2024 will return on Saturday, 24 February at 7pm on ITV1 and ITVX. The show will also be available on STV and STV Player.

Each series usually consists of seven episodes but with series 20 being Ant and Dec’s last, perhaps we could see more episodes before the show officially bows out.

What celebrity guests will appear on Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway 2024?

A full list of celebrity and musical guests for the final series of Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway has yet to be released but we do know who will be appearing on the show's first episode back.

Comedian and co-creator of The Office, Stephen Merchant, will appear as the Guest Announcer of series 20's debut show, with Simon Cowell appearing in an 'Undercover' sketch and singer Becky Hill and Urban Theory taking part in the episode's End of the Show Show.

If previous series of the show are anything to go by, we can likely expect some big names to drop by in the remaining episodes too. Ant and Dec have even teased special moments and the return of some old favourites in the show’s last series, as displayed in a short, 30-second teaser released by ITV.

"We want it to be the biggest send-off because we're resting it for a while," Ant told Digital Spy. “So everybody that we haven't managed to get on in the last few years, we're gonna try our hardest to get on. It's going to be a massive celebration of the last 20 years as well, because it's been running for 20 years.

“We're gonna bring old things back, we've got brand-new stuff, we've got lots of things planned and we're gonna have a lot of fun doing it. We love it. It's gonna be sad, but we're gonna have fun until we get to the final episode.”

Viewers can look out for a special instalment of ‘Get Out Of Me Ear: The Revenge’ where celebrities who have been the focus of Ant and Dec's hidden camera antics over the years finally get their own back. Win the Ads also continues, giving one lucky viewer the unique chance to take home everything they see in the show's adverts. Little Ant & Dec will also be back with the series' climax teased as something "unlike any Takeaway has ever done before."

How can you get tickets to Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway?

Free tickets for Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway can usually be obtained from the website Applause Store which allocates audience seats to each show’s recording on an exclusive, first-come-first-serve basis.

Tickets for 2024’s shows have not yet become available but interested parties are encouraged to register their interest online to be in with a chance of bagging tickets. Each show is recorded live at Television Centre in London and applicants must be over 18 years old.

Meanwhile, if you’d like to appear on one of the show’s many segments - or nominate someone you know for an on-screen surprise - you can do just that by heading to the ITV website and filling out their online form.

When did Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway start?

Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway first aired in June 2002 and ran for six episodes. The show returned each year until 2009 when hosts Ant and Dec decided to hit pause and focus their efforts on launching their new game show Push The Button.

This hiatus lasted for four years with the show finally returning bigger and better than ever in February 2013. Since then, Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway has appeared on ITV1 each February with 2024’s edition being its final outing… for now.

Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway starts on Saturday, 24 February at 7pm on ITV1, ITVX, STV and STV Player.