‘I’m hosting the National Television Awards – I want things to go wrong’

If you were about to present one of the most prestigious TV awards shows of the year, you’d probably want things to run smoothly. 

However, for Joel Dommett, who’s about to present his fifth National Television Awards ceremony, he’s hoping for a touch of chaos on the night.  

‘I quite like when stuff goes wrong, that’s the fun part,’ he told Metro when we sat down ahead of the NTAs on September 10. ‘You don’t want things to go completely not to plan, because that will feel like a mess, but you don’t want it to go completely to plan either.’ 

While I think it’s fair to say most celebrities would be horrified at the idea of things ‘not going to plan’, it’s easy to understand why the 40-year-old comedian isn’t fazed by the idea of going off-script. 

There’s an easy charm to Joel, and his giddy enthusiasm for the NTAs is clear even over Zoom.

‘It feels so fun,’ he explains. ‘The fact that it’s my fifth year, it’s also the 30th year of the NTAs, I’m 40, and ITV is 70. It’s going to be a massive celebration!  

Of course, just because Joel loves his work, that doesn’t mean he’s complacent about it.  

He told me that while the show was still in the planning stage at the time of our interview, he and the NTA team are always trying to make things ‘bigger and better’ than the year before.

‘It’s just got to feel different,’ he explained. ‘That’s the most important thing, feeling like you’ve made a step forward. Otherwise, you can feel like you’re treading water. You don’t ever want to feel the same as last year.’ 

However, Joel also let me in on a secret that stops him from getting too stressed about the awards.  

In his words, ‘It’s not really about me,’ explaining it’s really about ‘celebrating the amazing things that we’ve all sat and watched over the year.’  

And what a year it’s been. If you take a quick glance through the shows and celebrities nominated, it’s a who’s who of top-tier talent, or as Joel put it, ‘there are no weak links.’

That said, there’s one gong that’s already caught the TV world’s attention. Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly are once again up for the best presenter award.  

If they win, this will mark the 23rd time they’ve snatched the gong from their rivals. Still with competition from Gary Lineker, Alison Hammond, Stacey Solomon, and Claudia Winkleman, it feels like there’s some real competition for the prize this year.  

‘It feels like a tough year, but then every year feels tough,’ Joel said when I asked him about the beloved double-act’s chances.  

‘Stacey, everyone loves her. Allison’s bigger than she’s ever been. Then you’ve got Claudia, and now you’ve got Lineker as well, who’s just really beloved. So, it’s going to be harder than ever for them to win, but still, they keep winning it because it’s in their blood.’ 

Ant and Dec aren’t the only double act viewers are interested in. Stephen Graham and Owen Cooper – who played father and son in Adolescence – will be going head-to-head in the best drama performance category, and while Joel doesn’t like to play favourites, he knows exactly which actor he wants to see win.   

‘I would love Owen to win,’ he admitted. ‘I love Stephen, but it’s always really exciting when someone, at the start of their career, wins an award like that, because it just feels like it’s the start of something unbelievable.’ 

So, after all the glitz and glamour of the awards, how does Joel unwind? Well, he’s not hitting the parties or bars; he’s going home to watch Zog. 

‘I’ve got a two-year-old child,’ he laughed. ‘So, at the moment, the thing I watch on telly the most is Zog. So, I just watch Zog over and over again.’ 

The National Television Awards 2025 will take place at the O2 Arena on Wednesday, 10 September 2025, airing on ITV at 8.00pm. 

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