Ant 'n' Dec dart in to fight Doc
DR WHO is set to face a deadly new telly enemy —Ant and Dec.
The Geordie duo are to front an ITV revival of hit Eighties game show Bullseye.
And they are hoping it will give the BBC's time-travelling Doctor a kick in the ratings.
Battling
The Beeb has scored a huge Saturday night hit with Dr Who. And the new series, starring David Tennant, 34, and Billie Piper, 23, will hit our screens in spring.
But this time it will be battling it out with darts show Bullseye, which will see Ant and Dec, both 30, taking over as hosts from Jim Bowen.
A source said: "Earlier this year Dr Who completely wiped the floor with ITV, seeing off a challenge from Celebrity Wrestling.
"Now ITV bosses are fighting back with their biggest weapon of all —Ant and Dec. It'll be the Time Lord's toughest fight since he went up against The Daleks."
Bullseye ran on ITV for 14 years, finally vanishing in 1995. Ant and Dec did a one-off version in the autumn in their Gameshow Marathon series.
It proved such a ratings winner, bosses want to make a whole series. In its heyday, Bullseye pulled in more than 15 million viewers, with 12,000 a year applying to be on it.
It coined catchphrases like "You can't beat a bit of Bully" and "Nothing in this game for two in a bed". Contestants took home one of the most prized pieces of TV memorabilia —a bendy toy bull called Bully.
Thrilled
News that Bullseye is returning thrilled former host Jim Bowen, 68. He said last night: "I think it's smashing and marvellous the show is coming back and has been given to such high-fliers as Ant and Dec. "I would love to have a role. If Ant and Dec want to give me a ring, I'll be here waiting for them!"
Caption: ENEMY: David Tennant stars as the Doctor
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