Vanessa Feltz feels ‘huge dollops of empathy’ for troubled star Ant McPartlin

Vanessa, 56, says her defection from ITV to BBC in 1998 was the catalyst for a turbulent time in her career, including an infamous appearance on Celebrity Big Brother.

She has now spoken of her sympathy for her fellow celebrity.

Ant, 42, was admitted to rehab last June to tackle an addiction to prescription painkillers following a botched knee operation.

Then, in January, he announced his separation from Lisa Armstrong, his wife of 11 years.

Last month, he was charged with drink-driving after he crashed his car in south-west London, injuring a four-year-old girl who was taken to hospital. He will appear in court tomorrow.

Ant and his presenting partner Declan Donnelly, known to millions as Ant and Dec, have worked for ITV since 2001 and are estimated to have amassed a personal fortune of £62million each.

In 2016, they signed a £30million golden handcuffs deal which ends next year.

But their future as a double act has been thrown into doubt because of Ant’s personal problems.

On Saturday, Dec was forced to present their hit show, Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway, alone.

Mother-of-two Vanessa, a Daily Express columnist, said: “I feel huge dollops of empathy for the fellow.

“In my case, it was a decision to leave ITV for the ill-fated BBC’s The Vanessa Show, upon which, without my knowledge, some guests appeared who weren’t who they claimed to be.

“I went from nation’s sweetheart to the stuff of hostile front pages and biliously nasty ‘think’ pieces.”

Speaking in the latest issue of Radio Times, on sale today, she added: “As if that weren’t enough, I unravelled on Celebrity Big Brother, sobbing in the Diary Room, pioneering behaviour subsequently adopted by 100 per cent of celebs venturing onto reality television.”

Vanessa hosted several popular TV series in the 1990s and has since been a regular guest on chat shows.

She currently presents a morning show on BBC Radio 2 and the breakfast show on BBC Radio London.