Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly have been urged to step down from their hosting roles on I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here ahead of the new series on Sunday. The presenting pair have fronted the programme, which sees TV stars rough it in the Australian jungle, for more than 20 years with them cheering on dozens of celebs as they take on the gruesome trials.
Many of the infamous Bushtucker Trials have involved the use of rats, snakes, spiders and other jungle critters, as well as live insects during the eating challenges. Ahead of the new series, which begins this weekend, animal rights charity PETA has published an open letter online, urging 46-year-old Ant and Dec, 47, to quit the show due to some of the trials, Liverpool Echo reports.
In the letter, from PETA's Vice President of Programmes Elisa Allen, Ant and Dec are accused of being "complicit in cruelty to animals" on the ITV programme as various challenges include snakes, insects and other animals. The letter adds that Ant and Dec's hosting of the show sends a "message to viewers that you think animal abuse is not only acceptable but also entertaining".
