Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway will end with a huge UK girl group’s first television performance in over a decade, it has been reported.

The twentieth series of the live variety show is set to end in April, before the show goes on hiatus.

And to celebrate decades of entertainment drawing to a close, the programmes epic finale will feature a performance from a major group.

Performing live on television for the first time since their 2012 Children In Need performance will be Girls Aloud.

The group reformed in 2023 following bandmate Sarah Harding’s death from cancer in 2021 and will begin their tour in her memory, The Girls Aloud Show, in May.

Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway will end with a huge UK girl group's first television performance in over a decade, it has been revealed
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Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway will end with a huge UK girl group’s first television performance in over a decade, it has been revealed

Performing live on television for the first time since their 2012 Children In Need performance will be Girls Aloud
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Performing live on television for the first time since their 2012 Children In Need performance will be Girls Aloud.

A source The Sun: ‘They have been holed up rehearsing and practising dance routines ahead of going back on the road, and this is a real coup for Ant & Dec’s show.

‘The girls are going to be treated like royalty and producers know they will have amazing outfits planned for the evening.

‘The girls expect the lads to be their mischievous selves.’

Girls Aloud has known Ant and Dec for decades and were some of the first victims of the duo’s television pranks.

In 2004, the cheeky Geordie pair dressed as uptight nuns to interview the band in a cringeworthy sketch that left the group in fits.

The band were recently announced as headliners for the Brighton Pride festival in the city’s Preston Park in August.

Their largely sold-out comeback tour kicks off in Dublin on May 17 and ends in Liverpool on June 30.

The group reformed in 2023 after bandmate Sarah Harding's (centre) 2021 death from cancer and will begin their tour in her memory, The Girls Aloud Show, in May (all pictured in 2012)
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The group reformed in 2023 after bandmate Sarah Harding’s (centre) 2021 death from cancer and will begin their tour in her memory, The Girls Aloud Show, in May (all pictured in 2012)

Their largely sold-out comeback tour kicks off in Dublin on May 17 and ends in Liverpool on June 30
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Their largely sold-out comeback tour kicks off in Dublin on May 17 and ends in Liverpool on June 30

In February, Ant and Dec revealed Takeaway is going on hiatus so they can focus more on their families, ahead of Ant welcoming his first child.

Ant is set to become a father in June after it was revealed his wife Anne-Marie Corbett, 46, is expecting their first child together. Anne-Marie has two children from her previous marriage.

Speaking to Fault Magazine, Ant said: ‘On a more personal level, part of the reason we’re pausing Takeaway is we need a break ourselves, and we need to spend some time with our family.

‘We’ve both got children that we need to spend time with for a little bit. We need time to think and, and time to step back and look at the bigger picture and just see where we are now.’

The pair will continue their exclusive working relationship with ITV, hosting hit shows including I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!, Britain’s Got Talent and Limitless Win, all of which air across ITV1 and ITVX.

In February, Ant and Dec revealed Takeaway is going on hiatus so they can focus more on their families (left, pictured in 2021 with Dec and Dec's wife Ali Astall)
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In February, Ant and Dec revealed Takeaway is going on hiatus so they can focus more on their families (left, pictured in 2021 with Dec and Dec’s wife Ali Astall)

In February, Ant and Dec revealed Takeaway is going on hiatus so they can focus more on family time, ahead of Ant welcoming his first child
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The pair will continue their exclusive working relationship with ITV, hosting hit shows including I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here!, Britain’s Got Talent and Limitless Win