Legendary Geordie presenting duo Ant and Dec, real names Anthony McPartlin OBE and Declan Donnelly OBE, traced their family histories for the new ITV (UK) two-part show, Ant and Dec’s DNA Journey. In an emotional final episode, they discover their connection goes much deeper than first imagined.
It was only through DNA that their natural bond takes on even greater meaning and leads them to an ancient relative in Dublin.
Walking up a tower, media personality Dec nervously read the results of their DNA tests: ‘Ant, we’ve discovered your DNA into the deep past and you carry a unique DNA marker called S660. ‘Dec, we’ve traced your DNA into the deep past, and have discovered you also carry the DNA marker S660.’ At a loss for words, Dec shares: ‘So we’ve both got the DNA marker S660. OMG, that’s really surprising!’ Unsettled by his close pal’s reaction, Ant jokes: ‘That’s brilliant! Wait, are you disappointed?’
Geneticist, Professor Jim Wilson, explained:
‘There’s really only one way to share a DNA marker – like S660 – and that’s because you’re related.’ Recently, a Viking age warrior’s skeleton has been dug up in Dublin. He was in his late 20s, and died about a 1000 years ago, a bit more in about 790ad or so. ‘And what is totally amazing to me is that when his DNA was analysed, it was shown that he carried the S660 marker. This is the same marker that Ant carries, and the same marker that Dec carries. ‘This warrior is directly related to them, in the father line. And what’s more, he’s the first one we’ve ever found, anywhere in the world, the first skeleton with the S660 marker.’
The S660 DNA marker is estimated to have formed in the early part of the first millennium of the anno Domini or Common Era. It is a downstream marker of the R1b-M222 branch of the Y-DNA tree, as defined by a Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) called M222. This diagnostic marker is associated with many individuals whose roots lie in the counties of Northwest Ireland, Ulster and Lowland Scotland.
An emotional Ant told the cameras: ‘Dec means the world to me. I love him. We’re friends, we’ve got that brotherly connection, but it feels even deeper though now. ‘Doing this show has kind of made us look at each other in a different way. We respect each other more if that makes sense. ‘He means the world to me, Dec.’
Wrapping up their DNA journey, Ant enthused: ‘Its been two years, we started out in Newcastle and here we are now… cousins!’
‘We still jump every time the phone goes in case it’s another “DNA Alert”!’ they added.
The pair later took to Twitter to reflect on their genetic and genealogical journey: ‘Wow… our #DNAjourney has been a totally mind-blowing experience, and we hope you enjoyed it as much as we did making it!
Ant and Dec’s DNA Journey is available in the UK to watch on ITV Player.