Ant and Dec didn't vote for themselves ahead of the NTAs - but why?
Ant and Dec missed out on the gong for the first time in 25 years at the 2026 National Television Awards.
Ant and Dec have admitted that even they voted for someone else to win Best Presenter at this year’s National Television Awards (NTAs).
The presenting duo missed out on the gong for the first time in 25 years at the 2026 ceremony - with David Attenborough, who turned 100 in May, emerging victorious instead.
However, in a chat on their podcast - recorded before the awards took place in London this week - both Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly said the deserving person won.
Dec said: “So National Television Awards this week. We are recording this before the event, so we have no idea what is going to happen.
“We are nominated in a few categories, most notably Entertainment Presenter… Think you’re going to win it this year Ant?”
Ant then replied: “I don’t think we’re going to win it this year.”
When Dec asked who he thought was going to win instead, Ant replied: “David Attenborough”.
He added: “It’s got to be, hasn’t it? It’s David Attenborough. He’s a hundred years old. There’s been a lot of programs with him in it, and he’s a national treasure.”
Dec then asked Ant if he could let him in “on a little secret”, as he admitted: “I voted for him”.
Ant replied: “For David Attenborough? So did I.”
While Dec refused to believe him, Ant then laughed: “Well you can’t vote for yourself can you?”
Despite Ant’s remark, Dec confessed that he does actually vote for himself every year - but decided for the 2026 awards to vote for David instead.
David didn’t attend the NTAs at the O2 in London, but Mark Brownlow, his long-time collaborator, collected the award on his behalf.
Doing so, Brownlow said: "I hope this award is a response to the part television has played in growing recognition, not only for the terrible plight our wonderful planet is in as a result of human activity but also of the fact we now have a pressing responsibility to do what we can to protect and conserve it.
"Humanity has always needed the natural world for all the practicalities of life and for our mental wellbeing. Now the natural world needs us too. Surely we must not ignore that simple fact."
