Gary Barlow’s mansion was reportedly targeted by criminals last month (Image: Getty Images for Universal Pictures)

Gary Barlow and the rest of Take That appeared on Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway last month – just as criminals targeted one of the chart topping star’s properties

Gary Barlow’s family home was reportedly broken into while he was filming an episode of ITV’s Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway.

The 53-year-old Take That star is married to wife Dawn and together they share three children with daughters Emily and Daisy born in 2002 and 2009 and son Daniel, born in 2000. Gary and his Take That co-stars Howard Donald, 56, and Mark Owen, 52, were guests on Saturday Night Takeaway for the penultima episode of the last ever season which aired in early April.

A report has claimed a group of criminals smashed into Gary’s mansion – but it is unclear what, if anything, was stolen from the property. It is reported that the criminals targeted the building on the evening of Sunday 7 April – but it wasn’t until the morning of Monday 8 April that police were alerted.

It is also unknown if Gary’s family were present at the property at the time and no arrests have been made in connection to the crime as yet. While Gary himself was away from the property as he was in London that weekend for his TV appearance alongside 48-year-old hosts Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly.

A source who witnessed the aftermath of the break in told The Sun: “When I drove past I saw officers taking photos of the gates, which had been damaged. They were left half open. A few days later the gates had been fixed.” While another local explained that police went door to door to ask those in the area if they had seen or heard anything suspicious. The source said: “The police have been round to ask me about what happened, but I wasn’t aware of anything. I noticed the gates were flapping open. It’s a rather secluded place. It’s a warning to us all.”

While a police spokeswoman is quoted by the publication stating: “We received reports of a burglary in between 5.50pm on 7 April and 9am on 8 April. Officers are investigating the incident.” The Mirror contacted a representative of Barlow for comment – who was unable to provide any further information.

Gary has been indirectly involved in another crime lately – as a catfish victim recently revealed someone posing as the singer tried to swindle her out of money. A 62-year-old woman named Janet Smith, from Essex, revealed last month that she believed she had accepted a genuine friend request from Gary via Facebook. However, she grew suspicious when the account began requesting money from her.

The impersonator claimed they were Gary and that he had split from his wife – and bombarded Ms Smith with messages. She was able to win over the fraudster and convinced him to share his real name and he revealed he was a 24-year-old man from Nigeria. Speaking out as a warning to others, Janet said: “It’s so sad because he’s been saying to me ‘I love you’.” I said ‘I am 62 – you’re 24’. I’m saddened because he is poor and he’s got no money. For the last week, he’s been constantly texting me, asking me where I am. He was texting me from 9am to 3am.”