Amanda Holden Recalls She Took To Keep Alan Carr's NTAs Tribute A Secret

Amanda Holden has opened up about the special measures she had to take in order to keep the secret tribute to Alan Carr at this year’s National Television Awards under wraps.

On Tuesday night, the Britain’s Got Talent star serenaded Alan in celebration of his surprise Special Recognition win, where she was joined on stage by Paloma Faith and the cast of The Celebrity Traitors to pay homage to the comedian.

Speaking to members of the press, including HuffPost UK, later that night, Amanda admitted that she’d been deliberately avoiding her friend and frequent co-star for days so she didn’t blurt anything out about what was in store.

“I basically got on the red carpet the earliest I’ve ever done it,” she admitted. “I tried not to call Alan for at least a week, and I ran onto the red carpet at about six o’clock, which is unheard of. But I thought, ‘if I see him, I’ll say something’.”

Alan agreed: “We talk all the time – and we’ve had rosé together, and that’s like truth serum! Once we have rosé everything comes out. I know her PIN, I know her blood type…”

He then recalled: “I’m there [in the audience] and I see the silhouette and I think, ‘oh, that looks [like Amanda]’ – because I never saw you here, that’s why [I never suspected anything]. And then I’m like, ‘oh, it’s me, isn’t it?’. And then [Paloma] pops out of the coffin!”

During the surprise tribute, Alan was moved to tears, and delivered a heartfelt speech from the stage.

“I looked out there [in the crowd] and saw people [I had] interviewed, runners and producers who are now getting NTAs themselves,” an emotional Alan later shared backstage. “It all came together in one big thing and I think that’s why I got a bit upset.”