Programme
Format
Contestants have what they believe to be a viable and potentially profitable business idea but lack funding, or are already operating their business, but need additional funds for promotion or expansion. As part of their opening pitch, they are required to specify the amount of money they require from the Dragons (referred to as such because of their often suspicious, harsh questioning of contestants as well as their having the wealth the contestants seek, similar to legends of dragons guarding gold). The rules stipulate that if they do not raise at least this amount from one or more Dragons, then they would leave with nothing. In exchange for the investment, the contestants offerSet and theme
The opening sequence was shot in Ancoats, Manchester, an area transformed by the Industrial Revolution which helped give the city its nickname Cottonopolis. The sequence features shots of Brunswick Mill,Awards
The Dragons
Notes
*There have always been five dragons, with the exception of an episode that first aired on 28 October 2012 (Series 10), when there were only four, as Hilary Devey was unwell. This was the first time in the show's history that this has occurred. *Statistics
Successful deals per dragon per series
Statistics as of 2014 confirm: * £100,000 is the most common investment figure asked for by pitchers (30 of 143 pitches) * £35,000 is the lowest ever amount offered for a successful pitch. * £250,000 is the highest amount ever successfully pitched for in the den. * The highest amount of equity ever given away in the den was 79% by RKA Records, which has later renamed Bannatyne Music Ltd. * The most common amount of equity given away in successful pitches was 40%, with 42 of 143 pitches giving up that share in their company. * Deborah Meaden currently holds the record for the highest number of successful business deals overall with 84 and counting. * Tej Lalvani currently holds the record for the highest number of successful business deals in a single series with 12. * Peter Jones is the most prolific investor, offering investment to 54 of the 143 businesses who successfully pitched on the show.The Pitches
Ratings
Episode ratings from BARB.Series 1
Series 2
Series 3
Series 4
Series 5
Series 6
Series 7
Series 8
Series 9
Series 10
Series 11
Series 12
Series 13
Series 14
Series 15
Series 16
Series 17
Series 18
Series 19
Series 20
Special episodes
''Where Are They Now?''
''Where Are They Now?'' is a companion series to the main programme, often broadcast after each respective series, taking a look back at some of the show's success stories – and biggest failures – and finding out what the participants are up to six months on. The series began with a one-off two part special, broadcast on 21 and 28 December 2005, in which presenter Evan Davis reviewed the programme's success stories from series one and two, and looked at the entrepreneurs who received funds to market their ideas. Cameras followed Charles Ejogo, who planned to put umbrella vending machines in London Underground stations, jewellery designer Elizabeth Galton, magazine publisher Huw Gwyther and Rachel Lowe, whose London-based board game caught their eye. Following this, another one-off two part special was broadcast on 28 September – 8 October 2006. Later, two full series of the show were commissioned, with series one, of four episodes, being broadcast between 18 July and 2 August 2007. Series two, of five episodes, each following a respective Dragon and their investments, was broadcast between 17 September and 24 October 2010. Peter Jones' episode followed him meeting with Kirsty Henshaw, who made an emotional pitch in the Den when she came in with her frozen dessert business, and was determined to get her product on the supermarket shelves as soon as possible, and also meeting up with condiment king''Outside the Den''
''Outside the Den'' takes a step back from the world of ''Dragons' Den'', to take a personal look at the Dragons themselves, including personal and intimate interviews, a look behind their business credentials, and taking the cameras into their personal lives. Six episodes of the series have been produced – with the first set of five episodes airing between 27 October and 23 November 2008, and following Theo Paphitis, James Caan, Deborah Meaden, Peter Jones and Duncan Bannatyne in their own respective programmes. A further episode, focusing on new Dragon Hilary Devey, was broadcast over three years later on 29 December 2011.''The Best of Dragons' Den''
''The Best of Dragons' Den'' focuses on presenter Evan Davis taking a look back at the best and worst pitches from the past series of the show, as well as revealing some unseen pitches that were so bad, they didn't make it to broadcast, and talking candidly with the Dragons involved. Two series of the show were produced, the first accompanying series two, with three episodes being broadcast between 19 January and 2 February 2006, and the second accompanying series six, with three episodes being broadcast between 23 February and 9 March 2009.''Dragons' Den: On Tour''
''Dragons' Den: On Tour'' was a series of five episodes which aired between 6 September and 7 October 2009. Each episode follows the Dragons (James Caan, Deborah Meaden, Peter Jones, Theo Paphitis and Duncan Bannatyne) as they travel by bus around the United Kingdom to find out what some of the budding entrepreneurs who had appeared on the show have been up to since, including success stories, awful failures, and some very obvious missed opportunities.''Dragons' Den: Online''
''Dragons' Den: Online'' was a special, online version of the show, which follows the same format as the main show, but is presented by Dominic Byrne, and features Shaf Rasul and Julie Meyer as the Dragons. Instead of being set inside a Den, entrepreneurs pitch to the two Dragons via online video pitches, and subsequent interaction through webcam chat. The highest amount of money on offer is £50,000, which the Dragons can only individually invest in any one business. Episodes were posted weekly, for six weeks from 16 September 2009 to 7 October 2009, and viewers could participate by rating business plans before the two Dragons offered their verdict.Other programmes
A number of one-off specials accompanying the broadcast of the main show have also been produced, often as Christmas specials or charity specials. The following eight programmes have been aired thus far:''Pitches to Riches''
''Dragons' Den: Pitches to Riches'' reviews some of the more memorable and successful pitches.Successful people
Some contestants have gone on to reach the market with their products despite being turned down by the dragons and have met with a range of success. Examples include:Departures
Simon Woodroffe
After only one series of the programme, Woodroffe left the panel, citing his displeasure with the show's treatment of the entrepreneurs.Rachel Elnaugh
Shortly before the launch of the second series in 2005, Elnaugh's companyDoug Richard
Richard announced his departure from the show in 2005, having failed to make any investments in the second series.Richard Farleigh
It was announced on 18 May 2007 that Farleigh had been dropped from the series. Farleigh's replacement was the British-Pakistani businessman James Caan.James Caan
On 7 January 2011, the BBC announced James Caan had quit the ''Dragons' Den'' panel. He was replaced by Hilary Devey in February 2011.Hilary Devey
In June 2012, it was announced that after only two series in the show, Devey would be departing the show to front her own business series for Channel 4. Her final appearance was in the tenth series which aired in Autumn 2012. Devey was replaced by Kelly Hoppen for the 11th series in 2013. Several tributes were paid to Devey following her death in 2022 from the BBC, presenter Evan Davis and fellow dragons.Theo Paphitis
On 7 February 2013, Paphitis said that he would be leaving ''Dragons' Den'' because of other commitments. Paphitis was replaced byPiers Linney
Linney announced that he would be departing the show at the end of series twelve, in order to focus on various other projects and dedicate more time to his family. He was replaced by Nick Jenkins from series 13 onwards.Kelly Hoppen
On 23 January 2015, Kelly Hoppen announced her departure from the show after two series, stating she was unable to commit to the filming schedule whilst she focused on other commitments. She was replaced by Sarah Willingham from series 13 onwards.Duncan Bannatyne
It was announced in July 2014 that, due to "other business commitments", Bannatyne would be departing from the show. His final appearance was in the last episode of series 12, in which he made an investment jointly with Peter Jones in a cash-and-carry business seeking finance for a new sports drink. This left Jones as the only remaining original Dragon. He was replaced by Touker Suleyman from series 13 onwards.Sarah Willingham
Willingham departed the show on 31 January 2017 after two series, confirming that she had decided to take a year out travelling with her family and was unable to take part in the programme. She was replaced by Jenny Campbell from series 15 onwards.Nick Jenkins
Jenkins confirmed he was leaving on 31 January 2017 alongside Sarah Willingham, also after two series, saying "I have thoroughly enjoyed making ''Dragons' Den'' but I want to focus more on my portfolio of educational technology businesses and that would make it difficult to take on any more investments from the den." He was replaced by Tej Lalvani from series 15 onwards.Jenny Campbell
Campbell left ''Dragons' Den'' with her last episode airing on 3 February 2019. She put her leaving down to a need to focus on her new role at the Prince's Trust Enterprise Fellowship Programme, as well as helping her sons Rik and Tom develop as entrepreneurs. She was replaced in series 17 byTej Lalvani
In January 2021, it was announced that Lalvani would be leaving the show after four years, to focus on the expansion and development of his businessCriticism
''Sunday Mirror'' and ''The Daily Telegraph'' investigations
Although the BBC has never made any secret of deals that succeeded or fell through, usually offering a follow-up in the final episode of the series, investigations conducted in 2006 and 2015 respectively by the ''Clarity of investments and treatment of entrepreneurs
The differences between the agreement televised and the deals proposed after filming have caused controversy regarding how entrepreneurs are treated on the show. In 2012, the show faced calls to be cancelled following allegations that many entrepreneurs were being misled to believe their pledge of investment was based on returns from equity when in fact the deals were little different from personal loans. Founder of The Black Farmer food rangeTalpa Products Ltd allegations
The second episode of series 7 saw entrepreneur Sharon Wright, owner of Talpa Products Ltd, accept a joint offer from James Caan and Duncan Bannatyne at £80,000 for 22.5% after pitching the company's product 'Magnamole.' She has since alleged that Caan and Bannatyne misled her in the den, and that following filming the pledge of £80,000 was in fact a loan and not a purchase of equity. Wright was initially told to meet with series 5 entrepreneurs ElectroExpo, whom Caan and Bannatyne had also invested in together, instead of meeting with the dragons themselves. She was then informed an £80,000 loan would come from them and she would have to pay it back, as opposed to the dragons each giving £40,000 as pledged in the den. She stated she continued with the process so as not to alarm her existing investors. She was featured in the spin-off series Dragon Den: On Tour where she signed the contract beside Bannatyne, however she later alleged they threatened to withdraw the offer if the contract was not signed and did not have time to get legal representation to review it. Wright said she proceeded as she was then desperate for the money having increased her borrowing to over £26,500 having not seen the full £80,000 pledged, with ElectroExpo only releasing £4,000 to that point. Following the contract being signed she alleged Caan had misled her to believe he would pay for certain services, leading her to receive invoices that she could not afford, and then learnt she would have to pay up to £3,000 for PR services he would then supply. She then appointed a solicitor to review the contract and became aware she had limited access to the £80,000 loan, whilst the dragons had nonetheless purchased the 22.5% equity stake originally agreed upon for just £29. It was also said that at least one of the dragons would become a director, which her solicitor deemed controversial as the equity stake given was generally low. Stating she was now in severe financial difficulty and unable to pay her staff, Wright accused Caan of suggesting she reduce her salary from £50,000 to £12,000 to cope. With Talpa Products now facing financial collapse having subsequently lost part of its supply chain due to the investment's initial lack of clarity, Wright's solicitor terminated the contract and she eventually secured a £100,000 investment from another investor. Despite the product's eventual success, she admitted to suffering a nervous breakdown as a result of the stress endured and was subsequently hospitalised. Responding to Wright's allegations, Caan stated 'Unfortunately, within a few months of Sharon appearing n Dragons' Denshe decided that due to the success and positive feedback from the show she would prefer to keep 100% of her company, which Duncan and I fully supported. Occasionally the investment opportunity isn't as it appears on the show. I wish Sharon all the best.' Wright filed a lawsuit against Caan, deeming his response derogatory, but was advised to drop proceedings under legal advice. Although defending the involvement of Electro-Expo, Bannatyne implied that he was disgusted by Caan's alleged £3,000 PR fee charge and stated his regret that he did not invest alone with Wright, insisting he would have solely offered money for equity as stated in the den and not offered a loan.Dragon departure controversies
Former dragon Simon Woodroffe left the show after participating in the first series citing his distaste for how he felt the entrepreneurs were treated on the show, quoting 'The show became a battle of egos - not a forum for business innovation,' whilst also adding 'The thing to remember was that when you walk up the stairs to pitch, it's not five people necessarily thinking, how am I going to be able to make an investment here? They're also thinking, am I going to be the star of this next little piece? That's not how I was told the show would go down.' Richard Farleigh's departure from the series was met with controversy following the announcement that British-Pakistani businessman James Caan would be his replacement, leading to suggestions that the BBC had not invited him back in favour of having a new dragon from an ethnic minority. Farleigh announced his disappointment at being dropped from the series stating, "It would be disappointing if that was the reason - rather than anything fundamental - if it was because I was the wrong colour. I don't know why this has happened and I am very disappointed and bemused - I wasn't expecting it because all the feedback I got was very positive. I had even moved back to the UK to focus on commitments for the show. I am gutted that I have not been invited back." A BBC spokeswoman said "Richard will remain very much a part of the ''Dragons' Den'' team and will appear in related shows such when we catch up on some of the investments, It is a perfectly normal transition for the series. We do not discuss the reasons for the decision but it is all very amicable." In 2010, Duncan Bannatyne claimed Pakistani-born Caan had an 'unfair' business advantage due to his non-domiciled tax status. He complained that because Caan does not pay UK tax on his overseas earnings he has more money to invest in his UK ventures. Caan told the London '' Evening Standard'': "I do not apologise for my country of origin, Pakistan." He also said he could not invest with anyone who had a criminal record – a reference to Bannatyne having served a sentence in military prison when he was a teenager in the Royal Navy. Bannatyne replied that Caan was 'playing the race card' and 'personalising the whole thing', and accused him of implying he was racist. Only days before the filming of series 8, Bannatyne pointed out on Twitter that Caan is chairman of the '' Big Issue'', which employs sellers with criminal pasts, and asking how they could now work with their chief. He brought the name of the ''Big Issue'' founder into the row by asking: 'Did John Bird know about James Caan's view on ex-prisoners when he gave him the chairman's role?' Caan later faced bad press when he was reported to have offered to buy a baby from a family affected by the 2010 Pakistan flood. Caan subsequently decided to leave the show in January 2011. The BBC announced regret and sorrow over the exit and thanked him for his efforts over his four series in the show. Clive Morgan of '' The Daily Telegraph'' criticised his departure, stating his exit was the show's loss and it would not be the same without him.References
External links
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