Dragons' Den (British TV programme)

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. 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 offer equity in their business, the percentage of which is also stipulated at the beginning of the pitch. If the Dragons see potential in the business idea or product, negotiations then take place around the amount of equity on offer, with the contestant having the opportunity to negotiate further, accept any offers, or simply walk away. Dragons can also offer a percentage of the money requested if they do not wish to commit the full amount, leaving the other Dragons free to do the same. This can lead to the contestant receiving the financial backing of more than one Dragon, with the benefit of a broader range of expertise. However, for this to occur, the contestant usually has to agree to relinquish a larger share in their business than they had first planned.

A Dragon who, having heard the pitch, does not wish to invest, must declare themselves "out", implying that they leave the discussion. (However, on one occasion in series 4, Peter Jones continued to question an entrepreneur after his own declaration.) This concluding phase may range from a few minutes if the Dragons do not perceive the business plan as credible, to much longer when complex conditions are negotiated. The Dragons often ridicule contestants, on grounds that vary widely, but especially for over-valuation of their respective enterprises.

There is no legal commitment for the Dragons or producers of the show to fulfil their offers. All deals undergo due diligence before contracts are signed. It is claimed that half of deals are not completed after filming.[3]

The opening sequence was shot in Ancoats, Manchester, an area transformed by the Industrial Revolution which helped give the city its nickname Cottonopolis.[4] The sequence features shots of Brunswick Mill, Murrays' Mills and McConnel & Kennedy mills – all three are Manchester's most famous cotton mills in production at the time of the Industrial Revolution and keeps in line with the programme's warehouse theme.[4] The location at which the pitches are filmed has varied over the years. It was originally filmed inside a furniture depository in Stoke Newington. The production were forced to move after the first series owing to building work next door. For the second series shooting took place in a disused warehouse, Wool House. It was the first set was created by production designer Laurence Williams, requiring the construction of a section of the window wall and the staircase down to the lower floor. The owner of this warehouse converted it into flats necessitating a further move to Tanner Street for the next few series. Here another more extensive set was created including cutting a hole in the floor and again creating the stairs down to the lower floor. Building work required yet again a move to Pinewood Studios only two weeks before a series was due to be shot and the production designer had to create a complete set on the film stage including a staircase which descended down into the underfloor tank. After several more series were shot at Pinewood, the production was moved to the BBC's new home in Salford Quays at dock10, MediaCityUK. A brand new set was created for the move and was screened in the latter part of 2012 for Series 10.[5]

Space Studios Manchester, in Gorton, was also used to film the programme from 2015 to 2017.[2] From 2018 onwards, the show has been filmed at Old Granada Studios.[1]

• There have always been five dragons in each series.
• On an episode that first aired on 28 October 2012 (Series 10), there were only 4 Dragons in the Den, as Hilary Devey was ill during filming. This was the first time in the show's history that this has occurred.[7]
• Steve Parish was originally going to replace Nick Jenkins, but found he did not have the time and stepped down. He was instead replaced by Tej Lalvani.[8]

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.[63] 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.[64] 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 Levi Roots. Duncan Bannatyne's episode followed him as he travelled to the south of France to oversee his daughter's wedding, and then went back to work to follow up on some of his investments. Theo Paphitis' episode followed him as he took 90 employees to Greece for a week of team-building exercises, and also visited two companies he invested in to see how they were getting on. Series five, episode nine also featured at a look back at deals from the series, in a similar vein to Where Are They Now?.[65]

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 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 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 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.[66] 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.[67]

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:

Dragons' Den: Pitches to Riches reviews some of the more memorable and successful pitches.

In Series 2, Danny Bamping accepted an offer of £100,000 for 30% of his company Bedlam Puzzles, offered in a joint deal with both Rachel Elnaugh and Theo Paphitis investing. He rejected it after filming, claiming that he had a stronger vision for the company than either of his investors.[76]

In Series 3, Fenella Lindsell and Lara Goodbody rejected an offer from Richard Farleigh of £200,000 for 30% of their Yogabugs workout company. They also rejected an offer of £100,000 for 15% of the business made by Peter Jones, in a joint deal with Farleigh, and left the den without investment.

Tamlyn Thompson rejected Richard Farleigh's offer of £250,000 for 50% ID Scan Biometric.[77]

In Series 6, Episode 2, an entrepreneur rejected a £255,000 investment for 40% equity in Diamond Geezer, an online jewellery retailer. At the time, this was the largest investment offered on the show.[78]

In Series 10, Michael and Joe Smith rejected an offer of £50,000 for 50% of their wheelbarrow accessory company, offered by Duncan Bannatyne, and again rejected an offer for the same amount of money and equity, split equally between Duncan Bannatyne and Hilary Devey. Also in series 10, Dustin Toland rejected an offer of £100,000 from both Deborah Meaden and Theo Paphitis for 45% of his company Gigwam, a tent system for outdoor events.[79] In Episode 8, A to E Training & Solutions Ltd turned down an offer for £50,000 from Duncan Bannatyne for 32% of their resuscitation and life support business.

In Series 11, Duncan Bannatyne offered £50,000 to Linkee Ltd for 40% of its board game business, but the owners were unwilling to negotiate with Bannatyne and rejected the offer. Also in Series 11, Deborah Meaden offered Tim Morgan £100,000 for 15% of his mountain trike company, which was rejected. In Series 11, two entrepreneurs rejected a combined offer from Peter Jones and Duncan Bannatyne of £130,000 for 50% of their wool bedding company Baavet. In the final episode of Series 11, after accepting Peter Jones and Deborah Meaden's offer of £50,000 for 40% (later 30%) of his company Bobo Buddies, James Roupell rejected the deal after filming.[80]

In Series 12, Daniel and Mat of Pure Pet Food[81] turned down both Deborah Meaden and Kelly Hoppen's offers of £40,000 for 30% and 20% respectively.[82] Also in Series 12, owner of gourmet marshmallow company Mallow & Marsh, Harriet Pleydell-Bouverie, turned down both Peter Jones and Deborah Meaden who wanted 40% and 33⅓% of the company respectively in exchange for £65,000 (later £80,000 from Jones).[83] In Episode 10, Cally Russell rejected Peter Jones' offer of £75,000 for 20% of his company Mallzee, a mobile shopping app, even after Jones offered to drop his share to 15% once the investment was returned.

In series 13, Ellen Green, director of the Blue Badge Company, declined Touker Suleyman's offer of £70,000 for 35% of her company.[84] Also in Series 13, Jo Hilditch rejected Peter Jones' offer of £50,000 for 30% of her wine-making company, British Cassis. In episode 10 of the same series, Roy Fitter rejected Peter Jones' offer of £80,000 for 30% of his company, Ram Training Ltd, a horror events company. In Episode 13, Yann Morvan and Richard Lee rejected Peter Jones and Nick Jenkins' offer of £75,000 for 30% of their portable drumming business Aerodrums.

In Series 14, Sam Coley and Steve Pearce, co-founders of TickX, an event and ticketing search engine, rejected offers of £75,000 from Nick Jenkins and Peter Jones for 20% equity and one from Touker Suleyman for 15% as they felt the dragons had undervalued the company.[85] Since filming, the duo went on to raise £750,000 through 24Haymarket and launched a Facebook Messenger chatbot for live events.[86]

In Series 16, Episode 15 the founder of AppyParking, Nick Hubert, pitched his parking app and software company to the Dragons at a valuation of £10m based on 2% equity for £200,000.[87] He was unsuccessful, declining two offers from Peter Jones and Nick Jenkins who counter offered for a 20% stake and a lower valuation of £1m.[87] In July 2019 AppyParking closed a Series A round of investment worth £7.6m from investors including Hyundai Motor Company and Sumitomo Corporation giving it a 2019 valuation of £50m after its 2019 round.[88]

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, in September 2006 an investigation by the Sunday Mirror newspaper criticised the show, reporting that most of the deals were unfulfilled after the programmes were shot.[89]

The article claimed that the Dragons either pulled out of the deals over minor technicalities, deliberately offered unfavourable terms to the entrepreneurs in an effort to make them withdraw, or simply broke off all contact with them after the recording. The Dragons defended their record, blaming the failures on the entrepreneurs themselves, claiming they were dishonest in their pitches. Duncan Bannatyne stated: "We don't hand over money to people who don't tell the truth." Theo Paphitis concurred: "I kept up my end of the bargain. The show is not about a cash prize, it is about us pledging to invest. But people must tell the truth. Simple."

A BBC spokesman said: "After the initial agreement is made on camera, both parties enter a period of due diligence. Sometimes during this period the deals fall through."[90]

In February 2015, The Sunday Telegraph newspaper published a report that revealed that half of Dragons' Den investments fall through after the show once the cameras stop rolling.[91]

The study, carried out by Tiger Mobiles, who unsuccessfully applied to appear on the show in 2008, looked in depth at all 143 businesses that won cash on the show between series 1 and 11, revealing just £5.8m of the £13m pledged was ever invested.[92]

When quizzed about the numbers, Deborah Meaden defended her position informing the Telegraph: "I've had entrepreneurs with extremely unfortunate health issues, patent issues, and two or three silences where I never hear from them again." Meaden also added that "The world explodes for businesses after Dragons’ Den, they get offered better deals in some cases, or think they don’t need the Dragons. But what they find when the publicity dies down is that they still need help running the business."

From Series 1 to 11 the research uncovered:

• 76 out of the total 143 agreed investments never went through after the den.
• 23 of the 143 business that successfully pitched are no longer trading.
• Of the £13 million pledged by the Dragons, only £5.8 million was ever invested.
• £250,000 is the highest amount ever successfully pitched for in the Den.
• However, on the two occasions £250,000 was offered, neither investment went through after the show.
• £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 (for the youdoodoll); it was Deborah Meaden who invested.
• Peter Jones was the most prolific investor, offering investment to 54 of the 143 businesses who successfully pitched on the show.
• The highest amount of equity ever given away in the den was 79% by RKA Records, which has since renamed to 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.[93]

Dan Forster, who compiled the research for Tiger Mobiles, claimed that the issue was less about the structure of deals and more about the kind of companies that the BBC invites to take part in the show. "The problem lies with the BBC, who, in a bid to keep the viewer count high, have turned the show into a contrived affair that’s more about viewer entertainment than genuine business success. They tend to pick pitchers who are TV-friendly rather than those who are investible with a healthy balance sheet." [94]

A BBC spokesman commented on Forster's claims, saying: "We are proud of our record of achieving investment offers in the den and we look into every detail of a business before they are offered a slot on the show. The BBC plays no role in the deal after recording, and we accept that it is typical for some angel investments to fall down at the due diligence stage." [95]

After only one series of the programme, Simon Woodroffe left the panel.

Shortly before the launch of the second series in 2005, Rachel Elnaugh's company Red Letter Days went into administration and its remaining assets were bought by fellow dragons Peter Jones and Theo Paphitis. Although Elnaugh was at the helm before and at the time of the company's failure, she blamed the problems on the actions of the last CEO whom she appointed in 2002, whilst she took a non-executive role to have her fourth child. Following making only five investments over the course of two series, as a result of disputes with various Dragons, and the continuing uncomfortable position of the BBC allowing a perceived "failed" business person to continue investing on the show, she agreed to leave the Dragons' Den panel.[96]

Shortly after the conclusion of the second series in 2005, Doug Richard announced his departure from the show.

It was announced on 18 May 2007 that Richard Farleigh had been dropped from the series.[97] Farleigh's replacement was the British-Pakistani businessman James Caan.[98]

Bannatyne claimed Pakistan-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."[99] He also said he could not invest with anyone who had a criminal record – a reference to Bannatyne's having served a sentence in military prison when he was a teenager in the Royal Navy.[99] Bannatyne replied that Caan was 'playing the race card' and 'personalising the whole thing', and accused him of implying he was racist.[99] Only days before the filming of series 8, Bannatyne went on to Twitter, pointing out that Caan is chairman of the Big Issue, which employs sellers with criminal pasts, and asking how they could now work with their chief.[100] 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?'[100] On 7 January 2011, the BBC announced James Caan had quit the Dragons' Den panel. The BBC announced regret and sorrow over the exit and thanked him for his efforts over his four series in the show.[101] 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.[102] He was replaced by Hilary Devey in February 2011.[103]

In June 2012, it was announced that after only two series in the show, Hilary Devey would be departing the show to front her own business series for Channel 4. She appeared in the tenth series which aired in Autumn 2012. Devey was replaced by Kelly Hoppen for the eleventh series in 2013.[104]

On 7 February 2013, Theo Paphitis said that he would be leaving Dragons' Den due to other commitments.[105][106] Paphitis was replaced by Piers Linney from Series 11 onwards. However, in Series 17 in 2019, Paphitis returned to the programme for four episodes, stepping in for Touker Suleyman on a temporary basis.

Linney announced that he would be departing the show at the end of series twelve, in order to focus on various other projects and work related to enterprise, diversity and inclusion, including his not-for-profit digital platform, workinsight.org

On 11 August 2013, Hoppen became one of the new dragons on BBC Two's Dragons' Den following the departure of Hilary Devey. On 23 January 2015, she announced her departure from the show after two series.

It was announced in July 2014 that, due to "other business commitments", Bannatyne would be departing from the show.[107] 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.

Willingham departed the show on 31 January 2017 after 2 series, confirming that she had decided to take a year out travelling with her family and was unable to take part in the programme.

Jenkins confirmed he was leaving on 31 January 2017 alongside Sarah Willingham, also after 2 series.

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; and for that reason, she was out .[108] She was replaced in series 17 by Sara Davies.