Ant McPartlin is set to return to work on the new series of ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ as auditions get underway on Friday.

The presenter has been out of the limelight for the past nine months, following his arrest and subsequent conviction for drink-driving. 

However, Good Morning Britain’s showbiz correspondent Richard Arnold confirmed he will reunite with co-host Declan Donnelly at filming tomorrow. 

Speaking on the ITV breakfast show, Richard said: “I can officially announce that after a year off Ant will start filming on the new series of BGT.

“Can you believe it has come around again? How the time flies. They’re reuniting on Friday for the auditions.” 

Auditions then continue on Sunday, with subsequent sessions on Tuesday and Wednesday. 

The dates also throw into doubt the pair’s attendance at Tuesday’s National Television Awards, where they are nominated for Best Presenter – an award they have won for the past 17 consecutive years.

They face competition in the category from Holly Willoughby, who stepped in to host last year’s ‘I’m A Celebrity’ alongside Dec. 

Ant made his last live TV appearance in March last year on ‘Saturday Night Takeaway’, and stepped down from his TV commitments to enter treatment mid-way through the run. 

However, he later appeared on pre-recorded episodes of ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ auditions, the last of which aired on 26 May. 

Dec went on to present the ‘BGT’ live shows by himself, as he had done with the last two episodes in the series of ‘Saturday Night Takeaway’.